Bard Conservatory Celebrates 20 Years with Landmark Lincoln Center Concert on October 29

Bard Conservatory Celebrates 20 Years with Landmark Lincoln Center Concert on October 29

Dual Milestone Event Honors Bard College Conservatory’s 20th Anniversary and Leon Botstein’s 50th Year as President, Highlighting a Half-Century of Classical Music and Higher Education

NEW YORK, NY—On the evening of October 29, 2025, Bard Conservatory of Music will mark its 20th anniversary with a landmark performance “Innovation and Legacy: An Anniversary Celebration with Bard Conservatory Orchestra” at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, celebrating two interwoven milestones: the Conservatory’s founding in 2005 and President Leon Botstein’s 50th year of leadership at Bard College. The celebration marks a historic moment of leadership and legacy, reflecting Bard’s longstanding commitment to the transformative power of classical music in higher education and in society as a whole.

In keeping with this vision, the evening’s program offers a dialogue between eras, cultures, and ideas. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, a universally beloved cornerstone of the classical canon, will be conducted by President Botsteinand performed by the Bard Conservatory Orchestra and a distinguished chorus, including soloist, mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe, artistic director of Bard’s Graduate Vocal Arts Program. In conversation with this, the North American premiere of Tan Dun’s Choral Concerto: Nine reimagines the ideals of Beethoven’s final symphony through a contemporary global lens. Bard Conservatory Dean Tan Dun will conduct his work, bringing his powerful new composition to North American audiences for the first time. Together, these performances underscore Bard’s ongoing mission to blend tradition and innovation in music education and performance.

While the 20th anniversary of the Conservatory marks a milestone in its own right, the concert also honors Leon Botstein’s extraordinary five-decade presidency, a tenure that has shaped Bard into a cultural and intellectual force. Under his leadership, Bard has redefined the role of the liberal arts in public life, with classical music as a cornerstone of that vision. From the founding of the Bard Music Festival in 1990 to the launch of the Conservatory in 2005 and onwards, Botstein has championed and invested in an educational model that places the arts, especially music and the performing arts, and humanities as an integral part of liberal education. 

“The placing of the making and study of the arts as equal partners alongside the sciences, the study of society, and the humanities in a college and university context is extremely timely. It makes for better artists, viewers, and listeners, and strengthens forms of life that are ever more essential to the preservation of freedom and democracy. Bard is proud to be in the vanguard of this effort,” says Bard College President Leon Botstein, who has served in this role since 1975.

Conservatory Dean Tan Dun reflects, “Leon Botstein is my hero, and I am so honored to be performing ‘Nine and Nine’ with him and the Bard Conservatory Orchestra at Lincoln Center to celebrate 20 and 50 years of passion for music, peace, and a beautiful future.”

Since its founding in 2005, Bard Conservatory of Music has established itself as a leading institution for musical excellence, fostering a new generation of artists through ambitious programs, and a depth of esteemed faculty. The Conservatory integrates rigorous musical training with a full liberal arts education, offering students dual degrees and close mentorship from international performers and scholars with a model that prepares graduates not only for performance careers but also for meaningful engagement with public life and culture. This anniversary concert stands as a testament to the Conservatory’s commitment to artistic innovation, intellectual depth, and international collaboration. 

To mark the landmark occasion in style, tickets for this benefit concert will be available to the public starting at just $20, a symbolic nod to the Conservatory’s 20th anniversary, with exclusive opportunities for patrons to support the Conservatory at higher levels, including premium seating options. All ticket proceeds will directly support the future of Bard Conservatory and its educational mission, ensuring the continued cultivation of young musical talent for years to come. This one-night-only performance will take place at 7:30 pm on October 29, 2025, at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. Doors open at 7 pm. For more details and to reserve tickets, visit Lincoln Center.

As part of Bard College Family and Alumni Weekend, an early preview of the concert will be presented in Annandale-on-Hudson on Saturday, October 25 at 7 pm, and Sunday, October 26 at 2 pm in the Fisher Center’s Sosnoff Theater. All proceeds will directly support Bard Conservatory students. Reserve tickets for the preview at the Fisher Center.

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About Bard College Conservatory of Music

Founded in 2005, the Bard College Conservatory of Music offers a unique five-year, double-degree program at the undergraduate level, integrating rigorous musical training with a liberal arts education. Graduate programs include vocal arts, conducting, instrumental performance, and Chinese music and culture, along with Advanced Performance Studies and a Collaborative Piano Fellowship. The Conservatory’s US-China Music Institute, formed in 2017, offers the only degree programs in Chinese instrument performance in the Western Hemisphere. 

The Bard Conservatory Orchestra has performed at Lincoln Center, toured internationally to China, Russia, Eastern Europe, and Cuba, and in collaboration with the Bard Prison Initiative presents annual performances at NY-area prisons. The Conservatory enrolls over 200 students from 27 countries and 35 states. For more information about Bard College Conservatory of Music, visit bard.edu/conservatory.

About Bard College

Founded in 1860, Bard College is a four-year residential college of the liberal arts and sciences located 90 miles north of New York City. With the addition of the Montgomery Place and Massena properties, Bard’s campus consists of more than 1,200 parklike acres in the Hudson River Valley. It offers bachelor of arts, bachelor of science, and bachelor of music degrees, with majors in nearly 40 academic programs; advanced degrees through 13 graduate programs; nine early colleges; and numerous dual-degree programs nationally and internationally. Building on its 165-year history as a competitive and innovative undergraduate institution, Bard College has expanded its mission as a private institution acting in the public interest across the country and around the world to meet broader student needs and increase access to liberal arts education. The undergraduate program at the main campus in upstate New York has a reputation for scholarly excellence, a focus on the arts, and civic engagement. Bard is committed to enriching culture, public life, and democratic discourse by training tomorrow’s thought leaders. For more information about Bard College, visit bard.edu.

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About Leon Botstein

In addition to serving as music director of the Bard Conservatory Orchestra, Leon Botstein is music director and principal conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra (ASO), founder and music director of The Orchestra Now (TON), coartistic director of Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival, and principal guest conductor of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra (JSO), where he served as music director from 2003 to 2011. He has been guest conductor with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Aspen Music Festival, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Mariinsky Theatre, Russian National Orchestra in Moscow, Bamberg Symphony, Taipei Symphony, and Sinfónica Juvenil de Caracas in Venezuela, among others. Recordings include a Grammy-nominated recording of Gavriil Popov’s First Symphony with the London Symphony Orchestra, acclaimed recordings of Paul Hindemith’s The Long Christmas Dinner with the ASO, and Othmar Schoeck’s Lebendig begrabenwith TON, as well as recordings with the NDR Orchestra Hamburg and the BBC Orchestra. Additional recordings with TON feature Ries: Piano Concertos Nos. 8 & 9 and Rubbra & Bliss: Piano Concertos on Hyperion Records; Piano Protagonists: Music for Piano and Orchestra and Classics of American Romanticism on Bridge Records; and The Lost Generation: Apostel • Kauder • Busch and Exodus: Kaufmann • Rubin • Tal on AVIE Records. He is editor of The Musical Quarterly and of The Compleat Brahms (Norton). At the invitation of the City of Nuremberg, TON travelled to Germany for a commemorative concert in Nuremberg on May 8, 2025, to mark the 80th anniversary of the Allied victories in Europe in 1945 with an all-Mendelssohn program. 

About Tan Dun

World-renowned conductor, composer, and UNESCO Global Goodwill Ambassador Tan Dun has made an indelible mark on the world’s music scene with a creative repertoire that spans the boundaries of classical music, multimedia performance, and Eastern and Western traditions. Often programmed by the world’s leading orchestras, opera houses, festivals, and broadcasters, Tan Dun’s music has been played by the likes of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, China National Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and many more. Recent seasons have seen Tan Dun conduct the world premiere of his Requiem for Nature with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra; the UK premiere of his Buddha Passionwith the London Philharmonic Orchestra; and various programs with the Munich Philharmonic, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Seattle Symphony Orchestra, and National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra, among others; as well as open the Edinburgh International Festival with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and tour with the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra and NHK Symphony Orchestra. As a composer, Tan Dun’s individuality has struck a chord with audiences far and wide. His Internet Symphony, commissioned by Google LLC, reached tens of millions of online listeners. His Organic Music Trilogy of concertos—Water, Paper, and Earth—have frequented major concert venues since their conception; Paper Concerto, in particular, was premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the opening of Walt Disney Hall. Other works, including The Mapand Orchestral Theatre IV: The Gate, have been premiered by prestigious orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra and NHK Symphony Orchestra. With his penchant for artistic curation, Tan Dun is in high international demand. He currently serves as dean of Bard College Conservatory of Music, honorary artistic director of the China National Symphony Orchestra, principal guest conductor of Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, honorary artistic director and chief guest conductor of Xi’an Symphony Orchestra, and artistic ambassador of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In 2023, Tan Dun signed with Decca Records, who released the world-premiere recording of Buddha Passion. Previously, Tan Dun recorded for Sony Classical, Deutsche Grammophon, EMI, Opus Arte, BIS, and Naxos. His discography has received regular acclaim from critics and audiences alike, including the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).

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Image caption: (L-R) Bard College Conservatory of Music Dean Tan Dun and Bard College President Leon Botstein. Image credit: Photography by Matt Dine