Singletary Center announces ‘Season of Innovation’

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 29, 2025) — The Singletary Center for the Arts 2025-26 season features an eclectic mix of artists from a broad spectrum of musical disciplines. Dubbed the “Season of Innovation,” the season highlights artists with original artistic perspectives and groundbreaking creative techniques, few of whom have performed in Kentucky before. Tickets for all events are on sale now.

The month of October boasts two special events, the first of which is a multimedia presentation on the making of the Beatles’ iconic album, “Abbey Road.” Composer, producer and musicologist Scott Freiman presents “Deconstructing Abbey Road” on Wednesday, Oct. 22, providing insights into the Beatles’ creative and recording process featuring pictures, videos and audio that most people have never seen or heard before. The UK Art Museum will extend its hours that day to allow free viewing of the exhibit “A (Very) Brief History of Music,” which includes original artworks centering around popular music, including a lithograph by John Lennon. This event is presented in conjunction with a performance of the music of the Beatles by the Lexington Philharmonic in January 2026.

Innovator of the “live documentary” and Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Sam Green joins creative forces with famed indie rock trio Yo La Tengo for a rare performance of “The Love Song of R. Buckminster Fuller” on Friday, Oct. 24. “Love Song…” is a film that only exists in the live format. Green narrates the film from the stage as Yo La Tengo performs a live score. Originally commissioned by the San Fransisco Museum of Modern Art in 2014, the film centers around designer, inventor, and futurist R. Buckminster Fuller, one of the 20th century’s most groundbreaking intellectuals who envisioned a utopian society based on intentional design.

On Sunday, Nov. 2, the Lexington Singers and Lexington Singers Children’s Choir will perform the world premiere of a new composition by Elaine Hagenberg. This piece was written specifically for the Lexington Singers, featuring accompaniment by a chamber orchestra. Hagenberg is among the most in-demand contemporary composers for choral music and will be present for the world premiere performance.

The Singletary Center’s Expansive Sounds Series continues Wednesday, Nov. 12, with a performance by Chicago rock quintet Tortoise, with support from Louisville’s Jungle Boogie and Lexington’s Movie Jail. Active since 1990, Tortoise has left an indelible impression on rock and electronic music and is widely considered to be among the most influential rock bands of the last 30 years. This will be the group’s first performance in Lexington.

On Jan. 18, 2026, the Singletary Center and GreenRoom Exchange present vocal duo Tarta Relena from Barcelona, Spain. Tarta Relena uses close vocal harmonies enhanced with electronic textures to present the music of the Mediterranean in beautiful, bold new ways. Opening support comes from Meara O’Reilley’s Hockets for Two Voices, a one-of-a-kind vocal composition that uses intertwining vocal lines to imitate the hocketed rhythms typically associated with traditional African music.

One week later, Sunday, Jan. 25, Grammy-winning saxophonist Joshua Redman brings his quartet to the Singletary Center Recital Hall for an early evening performance of music from his recent album on Blue Note Records, “Words Fall Short.” As one of the most prominent saxophonists of his generation, Redman has collaborated with Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder and the Rolling Stones.

February begins with a pair of solo performers whose names are becoming synonymous with the instruments they have mastered. Classically trained at the Eastman School of Music, Mary Lattimore has spent the last 18 years establishing herself as a composer and harpist by creating lush, evocative soundscapes from her combination of acoustic harp and Line 6 delay pedal. Yasmin Williams is a guitar prodigy whose lap-style fingertapping technique innovates new approaches to the guitar, blending influences from John Fahey’s American Primitive style with Stanley Jordan’s jazz technique. Lattimore and Williams share a co-headlining performance in the Singletary Center Recital Hall on Thursday, Feb. 5.

The Grammy-winning Turtle Island Quartet will perform its “Shades of Blue” program Thursday, Feb. 26, featuring string arrangements of John Coltrane’s “Love Supreme” alongside works by Miles Davis and bandleader David Balakrishnan, making for a unique crossover between classical and jazz music. The “Shades of Blue” program will make its Kentucky debut at SCFA.

The “Season of Innovation” continues its tribute to the greatest figures in jazz history on Tuesday, March 3, as the Bad Plus — saxophonist Chris Potter and pianist Craig Taborn —  perform the music of acclaimed jazz pianist Keith Jarrett’s American Quartet. The Bad Plus will be performing this concert as part of the duo’s final year of touring, bringing their 25-year career to a close.

Barely more than a week after the tribute to Jarrett, the Singletary Center will feature a jazz legend-in-the-making with Immanuel Wilkins and his “Blues Blood” special project. “Blues Blood” features the saxophonist and band leader commanding his quartet, augmented by a trio of singers, as well as a chef, to present a masterwork that incorporates the influences of blues music, oral history traditions and spiritual jazz into an artistic balm for the soul. This event is presented in partnership with the Department of English in the UK College of Arts and Sciences on Thursday, March 12.

The busy month of March features the ninth performance in the ongoing Expansive Sounds Series, featuring guitarist Chuck Johnson and cellist Clarice Jensen. Johnson is a graduate of Mills College who established himself among the premiere fingerstyle guitarists of the early 2000s before pivoting to composing for pedal steel, electric guitar and electronics. Jensen is a Julliard graduate who uses her cello and electronics to create kaleidoscopic compositions that are both meditative and immersive. The two artists will perform solo sets before joining forces in a collaborative creation to end the night.

SCFA’s Season of Innovation comes to a close Thursday, April 2, with pianist Bruce Brubaker performing the work of Brian Eno and Philip Glass. Brubaker is a Julliard graduate, where he went on to teach for nearly a decade before joining the faculty at the New England Conservatory in Boston. He will be performing a program including the ambient works of Brian Eno and solo piano works of Philip Glass on the 9-foot Steinway grand piano.

In addition to the Singletary Center’s curated season, the venue will continue to be the performance home of the UK School of Music, Lexington Philharmonic and Central Kentucky Youth Orchestras, as well as presenting events from campus, community and national touring artists.

Through the Singletary Center and School of Music’s dedication to student engagement with the arts, UK students may use their student ID to receive one free ticket to dozens of performances each semester. More information is available at the SCFA ticket office or by calling (859) 257-4929.

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A part of the UK College of Fine Arts, the Singletary Center for the Arts presents and hosts around 400 artistic, cultural and educational events annually for the university community, Lexington community and the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Find a performance you’ll love at www.SingletaryCenter.com.