Cherry Blossom Concert: Ayaka Hirahara
Catch a smaller, more intimate concert by singer Ayaka Hirahara the night before she opens the National Cherry Blossom Festival! This event is presented in partnership with Japan Foundation New York.
Ayaka Hirahara debuted in 2003 with “Jupiter.” She has received high acclaim and numerous awards as a singer, including the Japan Record Awards for Artist Award and the Japan Gold Disc Award. All the while, she actively performs in diverse fields such as musicals, voice acting, dramas, and movie dubbing.
In 2015, she established the Ayaka Hirahara Jupiter Fund to contribute to society and provide various forms of support through music. She performed the national anthem at the opening match of Rugby World Cup 2019. Her musical theater credits include Love Never Dies, Beautiful, Mary Poppins, Fist of the North Star: Hokuto no Ken, and Moulin Rouge! The Musical. “Ayaka Hirahara Concert Tour 2024–2025 ~ The Swinging Classics! ~” was co-directed and produced with Masataka Matsutoya. She continues her concert tours…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (recommended). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/national-cherry-blossom-festival-concert-ayaka-hirahara-tickets-1983465667204?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: After Five. Performances. Celebrations. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible. Assisted listening devices.
Friday, March 20, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM.
Shanghai Quartet
Seating is limited. Reserve your seat in advance to pick where you sit ($6 fee per seat). Join the standby line for remaining seats on the day of the concert, free of charge.
Over the past forty-two years, the Shanghai Quartet has become one of the world’s foremost chamber ensembles. Their elegant style, impressive technique, and emotional breadth allow the group to move seamlessly between masterpieces of Western music, traditional Chinese folk music, and cutting-edge contemporary works. In their long history of championing new music, the quartet highlight works that juxtapose the traditions of Eastern and Western music.
Formed at the Shanghai Conservatory in 1983, soon after the end of China’s harrowing Cultural Revolution, the group came to the United States to complete its studies and were based in the US for more than thirty-five years while touring throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. In September 2020, the Shanghai Quartet moved back to China to join the resident faculty of The Tianjin…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (recommended). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/shanghai-quartet-tickets-1977543413584?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: After Five. Performances. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, April 9, 2026, 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
Musicians from Marlboro III
Seating is limited. Reserve your seat in advance to pick where you sit ($6 fee per seat). Join the standby line for remaining seats on the day of the concert, free of charge.
This season’s third Musicians from Marlboro ensemble showcases three outstanding, emerging singers performing vocal duets by Schumann, Britten, and Brahms, alongside a pair of Haydn’s most inviting piano trios. For 60 years, the Musicians from Marlboro touring program has brought memorable performances from Vermont’s legendary chamber music school and festival to national audiences.
The program features: Haydn’s Piano Trio No. 41 in E-flat minor, Hob. XV:31 , Brahms’s Three Duets, Op. 20 , Britten’s Canticle II: Abraham and Isaac , Schumann’s Four Duets, Op. 78 , Haydn’s Piano Trio in C major, Hob. XV:27, Artists include soprano Bridget Esler, mezzo-soprano Chihiro Asano, tenor Patrick Bessenbacher, pianists Lydia Brown and Solomon Ge, violinist Oliver Neubauer, and cellist Judith Serkin. This performance is part of the Bill and Mary…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (recommended). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/musicians-from-marlboro-iii-tickets-1977527540106?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: After Five. Performances. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible. Assisted listening devices.
Wednesday, April 15, 2026, 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
CANCELLED - Traversées – Constantinople and Ablaye Cissoko
This event is cancelled and will be rescheduled for a future season.
Seating is limited. Reserve your seat in advance to pick where you sit ($6 fee per seat). Join the standby line for remaining seats on the day of the concert, free of charge.
Join ensemble Constantinople and griot Ablaye Cissoko for an evening of musical storytelling that blends traditions from Iran, Senegal, and beyond. The kora and setar, traditional string instruments from two different cultures, meet with vocals, double bass, and percussion. In this collaboration, these traditions merge as though they had always existed side by side. Constantinople and Cissoko’s music has been heard over one hundred times in various festivals and halls around the world.
About Constantinople
Constantinople aims to anchor music in the heart of our community and encourage cross-cultural exchange among artists from around the world. Since its founding, the ensemble has promoted the creation of works that incorporate diverse musical traditions, drawing a…
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (recommended). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/traversees-constantinople-and-ablaye-cissoko-tickets-1977649047538?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: Performances. After Five. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, April 30, 2026, 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.