Northwestern University

03/26/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 03/26/2026 13:47

Bienen School of Music presents a spring guitar series spanning centuries, styles and global voices

Bienen School of Music presents a spring guitar series spanning centuries, styles and global voices

Series continues April 11

Media Information

  • Release Date: March 26, 2026

Media Contacts

Stephen J. Lewis

  • Immersive series traces the guitar's evolution through music, storytelling, and global artistry.

  • Complimentary tickets available for journalists who wish to cover the series

EVANSTON, Ill. --- This spring, Northwestern University's Bienen School of Music invites audiences on a rich, time-traveling journey through the artistry and evolution of the classical guitar.

The series continues Saturday, April 11 with internationally acclaimed guitarist Raphaella Smits, who returns to Northwestern for a solo recital. Renowned as one of the world's leading performers of the eight-string guitar and historical instruments, Smits offers a vivid glimpse into the expressive power and elegance of early classical guitar repertoire.

The following day, audiences are transported to the intimate salons of the 19th century with a unique program celebrating "the golden age of guitar and elocution." In a performance styled after historic parlor gatherings, Bienen faculty member Anne Waller joins fellow guitarists Mark Maxwell and Brian Torosian, alongside theatre artist Fiona Maxwell. Together, they weave music and spoken word into an immersive experience.

The series culminates on May 9 with the highly anticipated Segovia Classical Guitar Series debut of Xuefei Yang. A trailblazer for classical guitar in China, Yang was the first guitarist in that country to enter a conservatory and achieve global acclaim.

Tickets are available online at concertsatbienen.org, by phone at 847-467-4000 or by visiting the Bienen School Ticket Office at 50 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston.

Program details follow:

Raphaella Smits, guitar
Part of the Segovia Classical Guitar Series
Saturday, April 11, 7:30 p.m.
Galvin Recital Hall, 70 Arts Circle Drive

In this concert, Smits plays works by Mauro Giuliani, Fernando Sor, Anton Diabelli and Johann Kaspar Mertz - influential 19th-century composers who likely were familiar with each other's work and were active during a peak in the prevalence of classical guitar.

Performing in the Parlor: The Golden Age of Guitar and Elocution
Sunday, April 12, 2 p.m.
McClintock Choral and Recital Room, 70 Arts Circle Drive
Anne Waller, Mark Maxwell and Brian Torosian, guitar
Fiona Maxwell, theater artist

A "musical and literary entertainment" in the style of 19th-century parlor performance. As more households gained resources and leisure time in the 1800s, amateur performances in home parlors became a popular way to entertain guests and share music. Hear American, French, Austrian and Italian music for classical guitar on original instruments, placed in conversation with literary selections recovered from the archives of Northwestern's Cumnock School of Oratory.

Xuefei Yang, guitar
Part of the Segovia Classical Guitar Series
Saturday, May 9, 7:30 p.m.
Galvin Recital Hall, 70 Arts Circle Drive

Xuefei Yang is acclaimed as one of the world's finest classical guitarists. Hailed as a musical pioneer, Yang was the first guitarist in China to enter a music conservatory and become internationally recognized for the instrument.

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