Cleveland Institute of Music Announces 2024-25 Season Amid Kulas Hall Renovation

As a new school year begins, CIM has reveaaled the lineup for its 2024-25 concert season.

“CIM's commitment to defining and redefining the future of classical music is undiminished,” said Scott Harrison, CIM's Executive Vice President & Provost.  

“We may be down a concert hall, temporarily, but we are no less determined this season to present our listeners in Cleveland and around the world with a rich, diverse picture of our endlessly creative art form in the 21st century.”  

Even as work on Kulas Hall continues through the 2024-25 academic year, CIM will remain a leading destination – or a source – of great performances all over Northeast Ohio. Patrons can look forward to full lineups from the CIM Orchestra, CIM Opera Theater, and CIM New Music Ensemble, as well as dedicated Perspectives and Insiders series showcasing CIM's illustrious faculty and guests.   

What will differ are the venues. CIM's Mixon Hall will remain in active use but events typically held in Kulas Hall will take CIM musicians broadly into the community, to a variety of locations including Severance Music Center, the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Maltz Performing Arts Center, and local high schools. Of special note will be two opera productions at Cleveland's historic Playhouse Square.  

But that is just an overview. The real excitement lies in the details. Among the many highlights of the 2024-25 season:

• A fully staged production of Mozart's Don Giovanni in the Ohio Theater at Playhouse Square. 
• The return of guest conductors JoAnn Falletta, Anthony Parnther, and Tito Muñoz. And the CIM Orchestra debuts of Carolyn Kuan and Jeri Lynne Johnson.
• First-ever appearances by the CIM Orchestra at John Hay High School, Mentor High School, and Lorain County Community College. 
• Visits from composers Curtis Stewart, Marilyn Shrude, Claude Baker, and Margaret Brouwer. 
• The return of world-music icon Mike Block (BM '04, Aaron), with Biribá Union, as well as the second year of the student-led Global Music Experience.  
• The launch of an artistic relationship with the Gateways Music Festival, dedicated to celebrating Black Classical artistry, via an appearance by their Brass Collective.
• A black-box production of Chabrier's L'Étoile, at Playhouse Square.  
• A spotlight on CIM faculty via Insiders, including Tan Dun's Cello Sonata with Wei Yu.

Most events are free with tickets required, but a few select performances entail paid admission. Tickets are available Aug. 29.

For more information or to order tickets to fall season events, visit cim.edu/events. Tickets to spring events will be available later. All visiting artists, including guests with the CIM Orchestra, are generously supported by the Kulas Foundation.   

CIM ORCHESTRA  

The CIM Orchestra will again enjoy a full season at Severance Music Center, home of The Cleveland Orchestra. This year, the ensemble will appear at Severance four times in addition to other venues. The Severance season opens Oct. 8 with conductor Jake Taniguchi and continues Nov. 8 with conductor Carolyn Kuan; Jan. 28 with conductor Tito Muñoz; and March 26 with conductor JoAnn Falletta (all guest conductors are Kulas Foundation Visiting Artists). In addition, the orchestra will make five appearances in the broader community: Sept. 20 at John Hay High School; Oct. 25 at Maltz Performing Arts Center; Nov. 20 at Mentor High School; Feb. 12 in Stocker Arts Center at Lorain County Community College; and April 10 at Mentor High School.  

CIM OPERA THEATER 

Unable to perform at home in Kulas Hall, CIM Opera Theater and interim artistic director JJ Hudson will take their highly regarded shows on the road for the entire 2024-25 season. First up, Nov. 16 and 17, is Chabrier's L'Étoile, in a new production in the Westfield Theatre at Playhouse Square. After that, Feb. 1 and 2, comes Nico Muhly's Dark Sisters, with guest conductor Rakefat Hak, in a new arrangement conceived for Gartner Auditorium at the Cleveland Museum of Art. The final main production will be Mozart's Don Giovanni, April 23 and 25 in the Ohio Theater at Playhouse Square, led by CIMOT music director Harry Davidson. Lastly, on March 1 and 2, the company will present its annual Spring Scenes program, directed by Jeremy Paul, in Mixon Hall. CIM Opera Theater is generously supported by the John P. Murphy Foundation.   

CIM NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE  

CIM's New Music Ensemble, directed by Composition Department Head Keith Fitch, will host acclaimed violinist-composer Curtis Stewart for a concert of his music Sept. 29 in Mixon Hall. A little over a month later, on Nov. 3, the ensemble convenes again, this time around the music of Marilyn Shrude, Distinguished Artist Professor at Bowling Green State University. The new year will see a visit from Fitch's predecessor, Margaret Brouwer, and a concert of her music on Feb. 16. The season concludes April 6 with an evening at the Cleveland Museum of Art, featuring the music of Indiana University professor Claude Baker. The CIM New Music Ensemble is generously supported by the Roy Minoff Family Fund.   

CIM PERSPECTIVES  

A new edition of this series featuring Kulas Foundation Visiting Artists kicks off Sept. 17 with Biribá Union, a world-music trio featuring cellist and CIM alum Mike Block, guitarist and vocalist Christylez Bacon, and guitarist Patricia Ligia. The season continues Oct. 16 with the Quince Ensemble, the so-called “Anonymous 4 of contemporary music,” performing Courtney Bryan's Requiem alongside a student ensemble and with the composer in residence; and Gateways Brass Collective, Feb. 4. All events take place in Mixon Hall. More events, program details, and ticket information will be announced later.   

CIM INSIDERS  

The fall half of this series highlighting CIM's esteemed faculty in Mixon Hall kicks off Oct. 2 with Brian Wendel, principal trombone of The Cleveland Orchestra, and pianist Ellen Sommer. It continues Oct. 23 with newly appointed cello faculty member Wei Yu and pianist Keun-A Lee. Violinist Ilya Kaler concludes the fall series Nov. 13, in concert with CIM student pianist Michelle Bushkova. In the spring, pianist Antonio Pompa-Baldi, cellist Si-Yan Darren Li, and violinist Ilya Kaler will celebrate Ravel's 150th birthday March 21; and pianist Carolyn Warner will perform with friends, April 15. More events, program details, and ticket information will be announced at a later date. Concert dates and program information are subject to change.

OTHER EVENTS

Not everything CIM presents falls neatly into a single category. Case in point: the Global Music Experience, Dec. 17. On that day, in Mixon Hall, cellist Mike Block and a group of musically curious students will present a showcase of their wide-ranging explorations this fall. No less boundary-crossing will be the CIM Chamber Orchestra, led by violinist Todd Phillips, Nov. 20, featuring works by Britten, Shaw, and Mozart; or the diverse array of small ensemble and Academy Showcase concerts slated to conclude the fall season Dec. 2-13.

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