On March 30, 2023, Juilliard’s “The New Series” will present a concert featuring five new works by composer Reena Esmail and faculty member Amy Beth Kirsten.

The series explores contemporary music through multidisciplinary collaborations, founded by David Serkin Ludwig, dean and director of the Music Division as well as the series’ Artistic Director.

As a composer, Esmail’s works merge Hindustani and Western classical traditions. The works presented are “Blaze,” “The light is the same,” “Saans,” “Who makes a clearing,” and “Meri Sakhi Ki Avaaz (My sister’s voice).” The performance is presented in collaboration with Carnegie Hall’s season-long celebration of women’s contributions to the world of music.

“I remember being a student at Juilliard two decades ago, and just beginning to explore the connections between Hindustani and Western classical music,” said Esmail in an official statement. “I am excited to work with these incredibly talented students at a time when they are making important decisions about the kind of artists they want to be in this world. I cannot wait to explore and learn alongside these young musicians and to see what unique perspectives they bring to our work together.”

“The New Series” will conclude on April 13 with a workshop from Theatre Etudes led by Juilliard composition faculty member Amy Beth Kirsten. Her multimedia works treat musicians’ bodies and voices with equal consideration, and her Theatre Etudes class combines theatrical movement, music, and multimedia to create new ways of performance.

“The composers and performers in Théâtre Études have been learning to approach a creative practice that involves collaborative experiment and play,” said Kirsten. “One of the prerequisites for making ‘composed theater’ is that sections of the piece get workshopped in front of an audience before they are finished. The value of this experience is immeasurable and can reveal openings to explore, cracks to fill, and unexplored questions. The ‘materials’ that we will present in The New Series are not finished, but they are headed toward something. We celebrate this moment for what it might reveal.”