Musicians of the Old Post Road Announces its 37th Season: Cross-Pollinations
The Boston-based period instrument chamber ensemble Musicians of the Old Post Road is proud to announce its 37th season. Entitled “Cross-Pollinations,” the concert series will celebrate inspiration among composers and across cultures with the ensemble’s signature blend of musical “rediscoveries” in dialogue with beloved 18th-century works.
For more than three decades, Musicians of the Old Post Road has captivated and delighted audiences through its innovative programming, with dynamic and diverse music from the Baroque to early Romantic eras. Performed on period instruments, the group’s subscription series brings concerts to historical venues in cities and towns along the original route of the old Boston Post Road, the first thoroughfare connecting Boston and New York City in the 1670s.
Core ensemble members include flutist Suzanne Stumpf, violinists Sarah Darling and Jesse Irons, violist Marcia Cassidy, and cellist Daniel Ryan. The players are all acclaimed historical instrument specialists. The ensemble has been recognized for its cutting-edge programming and rediscovery work with awards from the American Musicological Society and Early Music America.
The series opens with a program entitled Brilliant Borrowings, featuring works that exemplify the magic of inspiration and influence among Baroque luminaries. The program includes one of Telemann’s “Corelli” sonatas, Chedeville’s reimagining of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, a Telemann concerto reinterpreted by Handel, a string concerto by Avison after Scarlatti, and the ensemble’s arrangement for chamber ensemble of Bach’s Italian Concerto, created in the spirit of how Bach reworked many of his pieces into new instrumental combinations. Harpsichordist Kelly Savage joins the ensemble for this program. Concerts are offered on Saturday, October 25, 4pm at First Parish, Sudbury; and Sunday, October 26, 4pm at Old South Church, Boston and online.
The December offering, Christmas in the Bach Workshop, is a seasonal celebration featuring festive arias, cantatas, and instrumental works by J. S. Bach, his students, and family members. J.C.F. Bach’s charming mini-oratorio Die Kindheit Jesu is showcased along with other creative fruitings by Bach’s industrious protégés. Vocal soloists joining the ensemble include Michele Kennedy, soprano, Sophie Michaux, mezzo-soprano, Jason McStoots, tenor, and Daniel Fridley, bass. Concerts will be presented on Saturday, December 13, 4pm at First Unitarian, Worcester and online; and Sunday, December 14, 4pm at Old South Church, Boston
In the spring of 2026, the season continues with A Hive of Creativity, a program that will immerse audiences in the buzzing, convivial atmosphere of Sara Levy’s Berlin Salon gatherings. Works include a cutting-edge instrumental work by Levy’s teacher W.F. Bach, a trio she commissioned by C.P.E. Bach, inventive chamber works by Janitsch and Schobert, and engaging readings penned by Enlightenment thinkers. Harpsichordist Nicola Canzano will join the group for this program. Concerts will be presented on Saturday, March 14, 4pm at First Parish, Wayland and online; and Sunday, March 15, 4pm at Old South Church, Boston.
The season concludes in May with Ben Franklin’s Musical Curiosity, which delves into the fascinating history of Franklin’s musical circles, both at home in America and in Paris at the soirées of composer Anne Brillon de Jouy. The program includes an alluring bouquet of songs and instrumental works by Francis Hopkinson, John Antes, James Oswald, C.F. Abel, Brillon de Jouy, and Benjamin Franklin himself. The ensemble will be joined by soprano Emily Siar and fortepianist April Sun, who will perform on an original American-made fortepiano from the early 1800s. This program is supported, in part, by a grant awarded from the MA250 Committee of the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism. Concerts will be presented on Saturday, May 2, 4pm at the Museum of Worcester and online; and Sunday, May 3, 4pm at the Shirley-Eustis House, Roxbury.
Musicians of the Old Post Road’s concert series is supported, in part, by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Collaborating organizations include the Sudbury Historical Society, the Wayland Museum and Historical Society, and the Museum of Worcester.
Subscriptions and single tickets are available now. Early Bird Subscribers will receive complimentary admission to the ensemble’s special Pre-season Concert and Party at the First Parish Church in Weston, MA, on September 13 to celebrate the release of the group’s 8th CD.
Premier Subscription: $250; includes best available seats for all 4 programs, online access to all four live-streamed concerts through June 30, 2026, and access to all 5 Delving Deeper episodes.
Basic Subscription: $180; includes best available seats for all 4 programs and access to all 5 Delving Deeper episodes.
Online Subscription: $140 ($250 for family); includes online access to all four live-streamed concerts through June 30, 2026.
Single In-Person Tickets: $55 general admission, $50 seniors, $35 for under 35, Kids 17 and under free with adult. ?Day-Of-Concert Rush Tickets (students and EBT Card holders only) are $10, availability permitting. Virtual single tickets are available for $35.
For more information, visit www.oldpostroad.org, email musicians@oldpostroad.org, or call 781-466-6694.
ABOUT MUSICIANS OF THE OLD POST ROAD
Musicians of the Old Post Road takes its name from its acclaimed concert series that brings period instrument performances of music of the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries to beautiful historic buildings along New England’s fabled Old Post Road, the first thoroughfare to connect Boston and New York City in the late 17th century.
Winner of the 1998 and 2023 Noah Greenberg Award from the American Musicological Society, Musicians of the Old Post Road has also received programming awards from Early Music America, Chamber Music America and the US-Mexico Fund for Culture. The ensemble has toured in Germany, Austria, and Mexico, and has appeared at festivals and on concert series in the US, including the Indianapolis Early Music Festival, the Boston Early Music Festival Concert Series, the Castle Hill Festival, the Artists Series at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, and the Connecticut Early Music Festival. The ensemble has held a residency at Dartmouth College and was featured on WCVB television’s “Chronicle” program and 99.5 All Classical radio’s “Live from Fraser” program.
The ensemble’s discography includes seven recordings that have each been praised in the US and abroad. They include: The Virtuoso Double Bass (Titanic, 1994), Trios and Scottish Song Settings of J. N. Hummel (Meridian, 1999), Galant with an Attitude: Music of Juan and José Pla (Meridian, 2000), Quartets of Telemann and Bodinus (Meridian, 2004), Feliz Navidad: Christmas from Spain and New Spain (Meridian, 2008), Roman Handel (Centaur, 2013), and Earthly Baroque (Centaur, 2017). An eighth CD, Into the Light, will be released this fall.
