Source Song Festival Announces 12th Festival Season August 3-8 at Westminster Hall
Tuesday, June 24, 2025 at 11:48AM
Through July 4, receive $15 off a festival pass using the code "EARLYBIRD"
Source Song Festival (“Source”) has announced its 12th Festival Season with a week of recitals, masterclasses and lectures, all open to the public. The 2025 season is focused on “Singing Down the Barriers,” highlighting African American spirituals in the concert setting.
From August 3-8, Westminster Hall in Westminster Presbyterian Church will host this celebration of art song. Created as early as the 18th century, art song’s traditional repertoire is expanded when Source highlights today’s emerging composers, who enhance and develop the meaning of this evocative musical genre.
Sixteen vocalists and collaborative pianists from across the United States comprise the eight MNDuo performer pairs that will study the musical works of song and perform in collaboration with local Minnesota composers. Meanwhile, eight composers refine their own emerging works with the guidance of the renowned Libby Larsen.
These impressive musicians and composers hail from esteemed institutions including Juilliard, Peabody, Rice, Eastman, University of Minnesota and Brigham Young University, among others. Their rehearsal and study will culminate in a public recital during the Festival.
Season 12 will also welcome nationally renowned guest musicians, composers, and clinicians to present daytime educational lectures and masterclasses for the MNSong and MNDuo participants. MNScholar features a daily 10am lecture dedicated to song repertoire, scholarship and non-profit research. Over 16 masterclasses and lectures spotlighting guest artists and festival directors are open to the public; all daytime events remain free. Detailed information about schedules, parking and tickets (including an all-inclusive festival pass) for evening concerts can be found at www.sourcesongfestival.org.
RECITAL/LECTURE SCHEDULE
Sunday, August 3, 7:00pm, Westminster Hall: Emery Stephens presents Source’s 2025 inaugural lecture, addressing “The Realness of Omissions in the Classical Canon and Our Present Work to Dismantle It” through the lens of his book, “Singing Down the Barriers.” The evening provides a foundation to form questions, begin discussions and prepare for a week of exploration. Free and open to the public.
Monday, August 4, 6:30pm, Westminster Hall: The legendary collaborative pianist/vocal coach Warren Jones leads a master class with the eight MNSong duos. A former longtime faculty member of the Manhattan School of Music, Jones enlivens the 6:30pm recital, which will be both entertaining and informative.
Tuesday, August 5, 7:30pm, Westminster Hall and Sanctuary: Witness three new song cycles come to life. Compositions from MNSong participants Steven Ward (using texts from Paul Dunbar), James A. Devor (music for four vocalists, piano, guitar and organ titled “The Workers’ Prayers”) and Laura Nevitt (interpreting Emily Dickinson’s poetry) feature local artists including Casey Rafn, Clara Osowski, Regina Stroncek, Scott Brunscheen and more.
Wednesday, August 6, 7:30pm, Westminster Hall: Enjoy this celebration of song as baritone Sidney Outlaw and pianist Warren Jones team up to present an incredibly versatile, diverse recital filled with Rossini songs, Schumann’s Liederkreis, Op. 24, H.T. Burleigh’s complete Passionale and Boykin’s 26 Ways to Look at a Black Man.
Thursday, August 7, 7:30pm, Westminster Hall: Singing Down the Barriers: Emery Stephens introduces eight MNDuos in a riveting performance of songs and spirituals from African American composers. This promises to be a festival highlight.
Friday, August 8, Westminster Hall: The Festival closes with two evening recitals. First, at 5:00pm, the MNDuo Showcase unfolds as participants recap their week of study and performance practice. At 7:30pm, hear a MNSong premiere from Marie Herrington entitled Plyve Kache: 3 Songs of Our Past and Present, followed by Florence Price’s Five Folk Songs and Libby Larsen’s This Unbearable Stillness. Guest artists include the Mill City String Quartet, mezzo-soprano Clara Osowski, and pianist Timothy Lovelace.
