Arts & Media❯Readings❯Poetry

Chatter PDX is a performing arts series in Portland inspired by the success of the innovative Chatter series in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which has captivated audiences for over 15 years. Chatter PDX brings a unique blend of music, spoken word, coffee, and reflection to Portland's vibrant cultural landscape. Chatter performances take place weekly and offer audiences the opportunity to hear a wide variety of classical chamber music and spoken word, performed by local artists. Coffee and mingling with the audience and performers before and after the show are an essential part of the Chatter PDX experience.

Each week, join a unique program of music and poetry.

Chatter LateWORKS is a late-night series that explores modern, experimental, and avant-garde trends within contemporary classical music. Hear local composers alongside rarely heard masters from the past 75 years in a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere inspired by our Sunday morning performances. Doors open at 7pm, show at 8pm; beer, wine, and refreshments are available for purchase at Hallowed Halls Tiki Bar.

Featuring spoken word performance by Hieu Minh Nguyen.

Presence isn’t just heard — it’s felt. Step into Seismic, a thrilling musical journey through grounded strength, deep rhythm, and explosive kinetic energy. From the breathless velocity of modern masterworks and volcanic eruptions to quiet, grounding sanctuaries of harmony, this dynamic program explores the unstoppable power created when a community takes up space together.

Join Rose City Symphonic Band for an evening of shared strength, bold visibility, and sound that moves the earth.

$20 suggested donation at the door

The Rose City Pride Bands is a welcoming space for members and allies of the LGBTQ+ community to forge connections through music. Cultivating a network of instrumentalists, music enthusiasts, and members of the LGBTQ+ community to entertain audiences and use music as a vehicle to unify the communities. Music empowers communities to collectively build harmonious societies.

Some evenings stay with you forever. This fall, Portland welcomes an extraordinary celebration of classical ballet as PRIMA Ballet Gala brings together artists of the Grand Kyiv Ballet and international guest performers for one unforgettable night. More than a performance, PRIMA Ballet Gala is a night of elevated artistry – where timeless classics meet contemporary expression, and the stage becomes a space of beauty, power, and emotion.

The program features iconic highlights from world-renowned ballets, including Don Quixote, Spartacus, and The Dying Swan, alongside vibrant national dances such as the thrilling Hopak, set to music by legendary composers such as Tchaikovsky. Begin your evening on the red carpet, then step inside for a celebration of artistic excellence and international cultural connection. Guests are warmly encouraged to attend in evening attire, helping create an atmosphere of elegance worthy of this special occasion.

Join a rare opportunity to experience world-class dancers, timeless choreography, and a night filled with beauty and inspiration.

Seats are limited. Be part of PRIMA Ballet Gala — where ballet speaks from the heart.

Join PSU professor and violinist Tomás Cotik and pianist Shinmyung Rho for an evening celebrating some of the most captivating works in the French violin repertoire. The program features the elegance and imagination of Claude Debussy’s Violin Sonata, the lyrical charm of Lili Boulanger’s Nocturne and Cortège, the expressive intensity of Francis Poulenc’s Violin Sonata, and two beloved works by Maurice Ravel: the Violin Sonata No. 2 and the dazzling virtuoso showpiece Tzigane. Spanning the late Romantic and early modern eras, these works reveal the remarkable palette of colors, textures, and emotions that characterizes French music, showcasing its refinement, imagination, and brilliance.

On Sunday, November 1st, Oregon Koto-Kai, the Japanese Koto Music Society of Oregon, will present its 15th Annual Fall Concert. This year’s concert will feature traditional and modern koto ensemble pieces selected to honor the koto mastery and memory of the late Kazue Sawai. The music will be complemented by beautiful art on stage created by local artist Satoko Motouji.

Kazue Sawai cofounded the Sawai Koto Institute based in Tokyo, Japan with her husband, koto master and composer Tadao Sawai. Not only was she the instructor and mentor to our Artistic Director, Mitsuki Dazai, but her passion and innovative playing style was an inspiration to our entire group and koto players worldwide. Our program honors that legacy with traditional pieces signature to her repertoire and boundary-pushing compositions from the Sawai catalog.

Toolbox Gallery ishonored to welcome the highly regarded Milwaukie Poetry Series for its biannual invited poet readings followed by an open mic.

Lewis & Clark College Department of Music and Portland State University’s School of Music and Theater present an afternoon with Grammy Award-winning soprano Audrey Luna on Wednesday, November 4, 2026 from 3pm to 6pm in Evans Auditorium.

Live Wire joins forces with the Portland Art Museum for an afternoon of roving performances ahead of an evening recording of the program. The event coincides with PAM's monthly Free First Thursday and the Portland Book Festival's expanded programming. Performers will include poet and rapper Dessa, bestselling children’s author Mac Barnett, Pulitzer Prize Finalist Ed Park, and Portland comedian Mx. Dahlia Belle.

Free pop-up performances will take place throughout the Museum’s galleries, giving visitors a chance to catch live performances and storytelling while moving through the PAM spaces. Completely free through PAM’s Free First Thursday general admission. Also, enjoy a fully seated, ticketed Live Wire taping hosted by Luke Burbank with announcer Elena Passarello, featuring a blend of interviews, comedy, and music performed live for the audience, then edited into an episode for broadcast to over 200 public radio stations nationwide.

Visitors can take in the afternoon gallery pop-ups, the evening show, or both.

Norman Huynh, Conductor
Steiger Butte Drum and Singers, Native American ensemble
Members of Portland State University Chamber Choir, Ethan Sperry, Conductor
Oregon Symphony

STRAVINSKY Symphonies of Wind Instruments
Michael GORDON Natural History
Grace MIEDZIAK New work (Fear No Music Emerging Composers Fellow, Oregon Symphony commission)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21

Inspired by Crater Lake National Park, Michael Gordon’s Natural History weaves Native and symphonic music in this paean to the natural landscape. Plus, hear works by two of classical music’s most intrepid pioneers: Stravinsky’s experimental musical essay on wind and brass sounds, Symphonies of Wind Instruments, and Beethoven’s vivacious and dramatic Symphony No. 1. Native Oregonian Grace Miedziak enhances the program with a new work that celebrates the Pacific Northwest.

Singer, rapper, and author Dessa will join the Oregon Symphony for an evening of soaring ballads, writerly pop songs, and rap anthems. The concert will also include a series of new monologues, crafted in Dessa’s signature style—true stories told with intellectual rigor, tenderness, candor, and wit. Don’t miss this landmark performance, presented in collaboration with Literary Arts as an extension of the Portland Book Festival.

Sarah Hicks, Conductor

Dessa, Vocals

Oregon Symphony

Join an afternoon with Grammy Award-winning soprano Audrey Luna. Audrey will give a masterclass with L&C and PSU students and present a lecture titled "The Business of Singing."

Started in 1999 and organized by writer Willa Schneberg, this annual event features readings by prominent Oregon Jewish poets and writers. The writers in the 2026 program span a range of genres, including fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and essays. Each author will share selections from their work.

Jake Shimabukuro is a world-renowned ukulele virtuoso whose groundbreaking artistry has redefined the instrument for the 21st century. Hailed as the “Jimi Hendrix of the ukulele,” Shimabukuro has captivated audiences across the globe with his masterful technique, innovative spirit, and deeply expressive performances that seamlessly blend elements of jazz, rock, classical, blues, folk, and traditional Hawaiian music.

Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawai‘i, Jake began playing the ukulele at age four, quickly developing a unique style that pushed the instrument far beyond its traditional boundaries. He first gained international recognition after his jaw-dropping rendition of George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” went viral, introducing millions to the ukulele’s untapped potential.

Over the course of his career, Shimabukuro has released numerous acclaimed albums, collaborated with an array of legendary artists—including Bette Midler, Yo-Yo Ma, Jimmy Buffett, Ziggy Marley, and Mick Fleetwood—and performed everywhere from the Sydney Opera House to the Hollywood Bowl and the Kennedy Center. His most recent projects showcase both his dazzling technical command and his growing focus on emotional storytelling through music.

Beyond the stage, Jake is a passionate advocate for music education and community outreach, frequently performing at schools and benefit concerts to inspire the next generation of musicians. Whether playing an intimate solo show or headlining with a full band, Shimabukuro continues to prove that the ukulele is an instrument of infinite possibilities—one that speaks a universal language of joy, connection, and hope.

Each month, embark on a journey where you showcase your talents. Whether you are a singer/songwriter, a poet, or a solo instrumentalist, here's your opportunity to shine on the stage. Feel free to start a jam as well. The stage is yours.

Get ready to take the stage, cheer on local creatives, and soak up an unforgettable evening of art, music, poetry, and community. The space into a vibrant hub of expression with a monthly Open Mic Night—and you’re invited. Whether you’re an experienced performer or just itching to share something new, the mic is yours. Singers, songwriters, poets, instrumentalists, comedians, storytellers, and more—everyone is welcome to sign up for a chance to shine. Sign-ups begin at 6:00 p.m., and the show kicks off around 6:30 p.m. with short (~10 min) performance slots.

Hosted by Joshua Bennett. All ages, all abilities welcome—bring friends, family, and neighbors.

Whether you’re strumming your guitar, reciting your latest poem, sharing a story, or simply enjoying the show from the crowd, this night is about connection, performance, and inspiration.

Celebrate Día de los Muertos at M&M Marketplace with two days of culture, music, food, and family fun. Join us on Saturday, October 31 and Sunday, November 1 from 2 PM to 7 PM for a free community celebration in Hillsboro.

Enjoy live music, traditional altars, Calenda, Calaveritas Literarias, a Concurso de Catrinas, food, shopping, and family entertainment. Bring your family and friends as we come together to honor loved ones and celebrate Día de los Muertos traditions.

Dates: Saturday, October 31 and Sunday, November 1
Time: 2 PM to 7 PM
Location: M&M Marketplace, 346 SW Walnut St., Hillsboro, OR 97123
Admission: Free

¡Acompáñanos con toda la familia para celebrar nuestras tradiciones, recordar a nuestros seres queridos y disfrutar un fin de semana especial en comunidad!

Portland Art Museum invites the community to join a Free First Thursday event, offering free admission to the museum for all, plus a Live Wire event as part of the Literary Arts Portland Book Festival. Visitors can take in the afternoon gallery pop-ups, the evening show, or both!

4:30 – 6 p.m. — Free, pre-show, pop-up performances will take place throughout the Museum’s galleries. Performers are poet and rapper Dessa, bestselling children’s author Mac Barnett, Pulitzer Prize Finalist Ed Park, and Portland comedian Mx. Dahlia Belle.

Free First Thursday tickets can be reserved online one week in advance and are also available at the door.

7 p.m. — Enjoy a fully seated, ticketed Live Wire taping hosted by Luke Burbank with announcer Elena Passarello, featuring a blend of interviews, comedy, and music performed live for the audience, then edited into an episode for broadcast to over 200 public radio stations nationwide. Performers are poet and rapper Dessa, bestselling children’s author Mac Barnett, Pulitzer Prize Finalist Ed Park, and Portland comedian Mx. Dahlia Belle. Doors will open at 6:30pm.

GA Tickets are $15. Preferred Seating is $40. Discounts available to Portland Book Festival passholders.

Dessa is a singer, rapper, and writer who fell in love with language as a toddler—and just never got over it. Now, she works in fields that traffic in words: she’s recorded rap bangers as part of the fiercely independent Doomtree collective, released a live album with the Grammy-winning Minnesota Orchestra; contributed to The New York Times and National Geographic Traveler; delivered a TED Talk on the intersection of romance and neuroscience that’s notched more than 4 million views; hosted 2 seasons of behavioral science podcast Deeply Human (BBC/American Public Media); and published a memoir recounting most of the above called My Own Devices (Penguin Random House).

Mac Barnett, the 2025–2026 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, is a New York Times bestselling author of stories for children. Mac’s books have won many prizes, including two Caldecott Honors, three New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children’s Book Awards, three E. B. White Read Aloud Awards and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, as well as several international prizes. He lives in Oakland, California. His latest book, illustrated by X. Fang, is Tom Nancy: The Sheep Who Swapped Brains with a Boy. From two of the most exciting picture book makers today comes a hilarious trickster tale and Freaky Friday switcheroo story: a sneaky, cheeky sheep named Tom Nancy has a brain swap proposal for an innocent farm boy named Felix that will change both of their lives forever. Laugh-out-loud, subversive, and totally unexpected.

Ed Park is the author of the novels Personal Days and Same Bed Different Dreams. He is a founding editor of The Believer, and has worked in newspapers, book publishing, and academia. His writing appears in The New Yorker, The New York Review of Books, Harper’s Magazine, The Atlantic, and elsewhere. Profound, wily, and beautifully wrought, his new book Three Tenses: A Transmission from the Nineties is a meeting of memory and myth, confession and obfuscation, coalescing to offer a singular picture of creativity in action.

The princess of Portland comedy, best known for her breakout performance on the popular Netflix special Hannah Gadsby’s Gender Agenda, Mx. Dahlia Belle has been compared to a Swiss Army knife—different tools to extract sharpness, softness, vulnerability, hope, and wicked wit. She’s been declared one of “11 Trans Comedians… Funnier Than Dave Chappelle” by Out Magazine, repeatedly featured on NPR, and has written for Cosmopolitan Magazine, The Guardian, The Stranger, and Portland Mercury. Her live performances have included NW Black Comedy Festival, Upper Left Comedy Festival, SF Sketchfest, and an awkward conversation with John Waters and Piers Morgan. In the upcoming live taping of her comedy special Affirmed at Polaris Hall on November 22nd, Mx. Dahlia Belle delivers 60 new minutes of stand-up to celebrate and affirm being human in the modern world through a combination of the wholesome and mundane, anecdotes about house cats, liscivious foibles of the LGBT community, and an unapologetic account of her personal journey with gender-affirming care, all delivered with her trademark free form wit.

Free First Thursdays at the Museum and PAM CUT’s Tomorrow Theater aligns with the revitalization of the long-standing Portland art galleries’ tradition of opening their doors for openings, receptions, and events on the first Thursday of each month. In recent months art and culture organizations have joined to bring back this popular activity, including the Pacific Northwest College of Art and the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education in the North Park Blocks.

Generous support provided by Art Bridges Foundation’s Access for All program.

November 4, 2026

Special Concerts

The Philip Glass Ensemble returns to Portland for Powaqqatsi, an artful cinematic experience that speaks to the impact of modernization and industrialization on traditional ways of living. Seen through the lens of communities across the globe, the narrative is amplified by compositions from Philip Glass that feature native, classical, and electronic instruments. Enjoyed alone or as the second in The Qatsi Trilogy, you won’t want to miss this thought-provoking performance from The Philip Glass Ensemble and conductor Michael Riesman.

po.waq.qa.tsi (from the Hopi language, powaq sorcerer + qatsi life) n., an entity, a way of life, that consumes the life forces of other beings in order to further its own life.

• Michael Riesman Conductor
• Members of Portland State University Chamber Choir Ethan Sperry, Conductor
• The Philip Glass Ensemble
• Oregon Symphony

This concert is part of the Special Concerts series, and is eligible for the Choose Your Own Series (Portland only). Concert length is approximately 1 hour 40 minutes. No intermission.

Concert begins promptly at the time listed.

Celebrate the release of A Thousand Flames, the debut poetry collection by Corey S. Pressman. Corey S. Pressman's debut collection, A Thousand Flames, offers poems of secular devotion in which a bird feeder can stand as the axis mundi and the bees have a god of their own. Across twelve sections, they travel from a Rockland County childhood to a hilltop in the fog, and as far back as the rooftops of Neolithic Çatalhöyük. Each poem asks you to slow down and stay a little longer than expected.

"Corey Pressman is a magical human - magical art, magical writing. His finely made poems are bells of vision and clarity to help us 'stay the same changing.'" - Naomi Shihab Nye

Inspired by Crater Lake National Park, Michael Gordon’s Natural History weaves Native and symphonic music in this paean to the natural landscape. Plus, hear works by two of classical music’s most intrepid pioneers: Stravinsky’s experimental musical essay on wind and brass sounds, Symphonies of Wind Instruments, and Beethoven’s vivacious and dramatic Symphony No. 1. Native Oregonian Grace Miedziak enhances the program with a new work that celebrates the Pacific Northwest.

Norman Huynh, Conductor

Steiger Butte Drum and Singers, Native American ensemble

Members of Portland State University Chamber Choir, Ethan Sperry, Conductor

Oregon Symphony

Stravinsky Symphonies of Wind Instruments

Michael Gordon Natural History

Grace Meidziak New work (Fear No Music Emerging Composers Fellow, Oregon Symphony commission)

Beethover Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21

Music is more than just an aural language – it is a multitude of communication modes and literacies. Sight Reading features world-renowned songwriters translating between dialects in real time: the written language of music (usually expressed on staff), oral / aural traditions and “playing by ear” come together to work with Oregon Symphony musicians as they perform newly-created arrangements of songs by musicians who write their music in a variety of ways.

Jimmie Herrod

Jimmie Herrod is a singer, songwriter, and performer celebrated for his radiant tone and emotional depth. Hailed by The Seattle Times as “a voice like a beacon of hope,” Herrod brings striking expressivity to performances across stage and screen.

He rose to international prominence as a finalist on America’s Got Talent, where he earned the coveted Golden Buzzer from Sofía Vergara. He later returned to compete on AGT: All-Stars, further expanding his global audience.

Since 2017, Herrod has toured extensively with Pink Martini, performing throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. He is also a frequent guest with major orchestras across the United States and has collaborated with artists including Renée Fleming, Lalah Hathaway, Brian Blade, and Vince Mendoza.

Equally at home across genres, Herrod is known for performances that combine technical precision with warmth, clarity, and a powerful sense of connection.

Katherine Paul

This land runs through Katherine Paul’s blood. And it called to her. In dreams she saw the river, her ancestors, and her home.When the land calls, you listen. And KP found herself far from her ancestral lands during a time of collective trauma, when the world was wounded and in need of healing. In 2020 she made the journey from Portland back to the Skagit River, back to the cedar trees that stand tall and shrouded in fog, back to the tide flats and the mountains, back to Swinomish.

It is a powerful thing to return to our ancestral lands and often times the journey is not easy. Like the salmon through the currents, like the tide as it crawls to shore this is a story of return. It is the call and response. It is the outstretched arms of the people who came before, welcoming her home.The Land, The Water, The Sky is a celebration of lineage and strength. Even in its deepest moments of loneliness and grief, of frustration over a world wrought with colonial violence and pain, the songs remind us that if we slow down, if we listen to the waves and the wind through the trees, we will remember to breathe.

There is a throughline of story in every song, a remembrance of knowledge and teachings, a gratitude of wisdom passed down and carried. There is a reimagining of Sedna who was offered to the sea, and a beautiful rumination on sacrifice and humanity, and what it means to hold the stories that work to teach us something.

Chord progressions born out of moments of sadness and solitude transform into the islands that sit blue along the horizon. The Salish Sea curves along her homelands, and when the singer is close to this water she is reminded of her grandmother, how she looked out at these same islands, and she’s held by spirit and memory.

The Land, The Water, The Sky rises and falls, in darkness and in light, but even in its most melancholy moments it is never despairing. That is the beauty of returning home. When you stand on ancestral lands it is impossible to be alone. You feel the arms and hands that hold you up, unwilling to let you fall into sorrow or abandonment. In her songs Katherine Paul has channeled that feeling of being held. In every note she has written a love letter to indigenous strength and healing.

There is a joy present here, a fierce blissfulness that comes with walking the trails along the river, feeling the sand and the stones beneath her feet. It is the pride and the certainty that comes with knowing her ancestors walked along the same land, dipped their hands into the water, and ran their fingertips along the same bark of cedar trees.

This is a story of hope, as it details the joy of returning. Katherine Paul’s journey home wasn’t made alone, and the songs are crowded with loved ones and relatives, like a really good party. And as the songs walk us through the land it is important we hover over the images and the beauty, the moments that mark this album as site specific. The power of this land is woven throughout, telling the story of narrow waterways, brushstrokes, salmon stinta, and above all healing. Let it take you. Move through the story and see the land through her eyes, because it is a gift, awelcomedsʔabadəb.

**The word “gift” in Lushootseed, the language of the Coast Salish people“

Nick Jaina

Nick Jaina is a Portland-based musician and writer whose work bridges music, literature, and performance. Originally from Sacramento, he has lived and worked in Portland, New York, and New Orleans, shaping a multidisciplinary creative career.

Jaina is the author of the memoir Get It While You Can, a finalist for the Oregon Book Award and now in its third printing. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, McSweeney’s, and Oregon Humanities.

As a musician, he has released numerous albums under his own name, including 2025’s The Monster Mash, blending literary sensibility with adventurous songwriting. His work often crosses artistic boundaries, reflecting a deep engagement with narrative and form.

He co-founded and served as music director for the New York-based ballet company Satellite, collaborating with dancers from Juilliard School and New York City Ballet, with performances at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Jaina has also composed scores for films and documentaries including All Sorts, Cement Suitcase, and Elemental: Reimagine Wildfire.

45th Parallel Universe is a collective of musicians dedicated to celebrating great chamber music through intimate, imaginative performances. Comprised primarily of musicians from the Oregon Symphony, the ensemble brings exceptional artistry and a spirit of collaboration to every project.

Since 2009, 45th Parallel has blurred boundaries between old and new, classical and contemporary, bluegrass and jazz, fiddle and folk. Their programming reflects Portland’s vibrant creative community, drawing together diverse audiences through unexpected and thoughtfully curated musical experiences.

Known for its “360-degree” approach to programming, the ensemble seamlessly weaves Bach and Beethoven alongside adventurous repertoire and cross-genre collaborations. These projects often feature artists from a wide range of traditions, embracing the richness and diversity of the region.

At its core, 45th Parallel Universe believes in music as a powerful and shared human experience—one that is both timeless and ever-evolving.

Bells of the Cascade presents "International Rhythms," a concert featuring exciting music from many different countries. Featuring Grammy- and Oscar-winning songs like "Golden" (K-pop Demon Hunters), "Russian Sailors' Dance" from the ballet The Red Poppy, a stunning folk song from England, "The Turtle Dove", and the electrifying "Firedance" from Riverdance, this concert is thrilling and will be a delightful way to spend your afternoon at the start of November.

Tina Chang reads from her new poetry collection Lion at Portland Art Museum in the Native American Art gallery (Level 2, Room 215), paired with Sara Siestreem, fastened to the rock (blood, sweat, and tears).

In Lion, Tina Chang mines personal and collective memory to explore safety and danger, visibility and invisibility as an Asian American woman. Throughout the collection, Chang responds to multi-hyphenate women artists, including Haena Yoo, Hồng-An Trương, Astria Suparak, and a collective whose work paid tribute to the life of Christina Yuna Lee, a young woman who was killed during the height of anti-Asian hate crimes. Responding to art across various media—text, illustration, painting, video, and sculpture—Lion sparks cross-disciplinary dialogue on Asian American perspectives, surveillance, and the myth of the model minority.

As the aftermath of the pandemic is examined, so too are the structures of bias, racism, and violence that continue. The collection’s title explores the word’s cultural history, composite Chinese iconography, and lion-centered explorations of strength and mastery. Lion traverses the closeness and distance between the racialized self the world views and the perceived self who endures and survives.

“An urgent exploration of Asian American identity from a poet with a ‘fearless imagination.’”–Tracy K. Smith, winner of the Pulitzer Prize

Choreographer Lai Hung-Chung makes dances of striking beauty and intention. “Birdy,” his captivating signature work for Hung Dance, moves between suspense and explosive energy, between the weight of tradition and the pull toward something new. Hung Dance blends traditional Chinese arts, including tai chi, Peking Opera, and classical Chinese music, with contemporary dance technique and driving electronic music, creating work that is poetic and rhythmic at once. What audiences see on stage is a world in constant transformation, where bodies bend and resist, images linger, and the tension between holding on and letting go becomes the dance itself.

TAIPEI CITY, TAIWAN

Birdy

“…a dreamy sensibility with astonishing athleticism in culturally sensitive modern dance performance.” —Charlie Smith, Pancouver

Sponsored by George & Nancy Thorn. White Bird’s Uncaged Series Sponsor: Ronni Lacroute

The Friday and Saturday performances will have pre-show talks. Come early to hear from the dancers from 6:15–6:45 PM. No ticket needed.

Join us November 3rd for the Hung Dance Lecture Demonstration, FREE with RSVP here .

Greece’s Galan Trio performs at Pacific University as part of their Kinesis tour, bringing a program of American composers hailing from the West Coast, including Pacific University faculty member Ryan Francis. Their appearance is underwritten by the Elise Elliot Trust and is presented under the auspices of Greece’s Ministry of Culture.

”Kinesis” is Galan Trio’s attempt to explore the music of contemporary American composers
by bringing their works together in an original, multifaceted concert program. The project
draws from collaboration between Galan Trio and professors of composition from select
U.S. universities, and from the notion of “Kinesis.” Kinesis is an undirected movement of a
cell, organism, or part, in response to an external stimulus. In Greek, Kinesis means
movement, motion. Motion is a fundamental characteristic of all living beings; motion is
what all musicians worldwide have desired during the last couple of years; motion alludes to
continuity, and it’s a promise for the future of “Kinesis” itself.

Ticket Prices: $21 general admission. Free for Pacific students, faculty and staff. Online ticket sales only. Purchase tickets at https://www.pacificu.edu/musictickets.

November 11 & 12, 2026

Special Concerts

Portugal. The Man takes the stage at the Schnitz for the first time with the Oregon Symphony, delivering amped-up orchestral rock to close out their U.S. tour. Celebrate the 15th anniversary of In the Mountain in the Cloud alongside their newest album, SHISH, with live performances featuring music from both albums. They’ll be joined by artists Quinn Christopherson, May Arden, Onry, Redray Frazier, and Sarah Clarke for a one-of-a-kind performance created just for Portland.

• Raúl Gómez-Rojas Conductor
• Portugal. The Man
• Oregon Symphony

This concert is part of the Special Concerts series, and is eligible for the Choose Your Own Series (Portland only).

Concert begins promptly at the time listed.

In Buddhist thought, the Tree of Life is a symbol of awakening, wisdom, and the interconnectedness of all life. Its roots reach deep into the earth while its branches extend toward the sky, reminding us that each generation grows from those that came before and that our lives are shaped by the communities and traditions that sustain us.

Opening the PSU Choirs' concert season, "Tree of Life" explores these themes through music that spans continents and centuries. Performed by the PSU Chamber Choir, Rose Choir and Thorn Choir, the program pairs cherished works from the Classical choral tradition with music by a new generation of Southeast Asian composers. At its center is Indonesian composer Bagus Utomo's Gayatri, inspired by the legendary queen whose wisdom and spiritual devotion remain an enduring part of Indonesian cultural heritage. The concert also features works by Budi Susanto Yohanes, Ily Matthew Maniano and Matthew Lyon Hazzard. Several of these pieces will be recorded later this year by the internationally acclaimed PSU Chamber Choir at Skywalker Sound, offering audiences an opportunity to hear this music before it is released.

Portland Piano International presents Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki, a Deutsche Grammophon artist, in “a whole dancing world,” a recital of dances from across Europe and the Americas. The program includes Martinů’s Three Czech Dances, Szymanowski’s Four Polish Dances, Schubert’s 16 German Dances, Bartók’s Romanian Folk Dances, Ginastera’s Danzas argentinas, waltzes by Chopin and Brahms, Piazzolla’s Libertango, Falla’s “Ritual Fire Dance,” and Chopin’s “Heroic” Polonaise.

A free pre-concert lecture with Bill Crane and Amelia De Vaal begins at 3:15 p.m.

We are delighted to welcome Gavin Van Horn, editor of the new anthology Sensoria: Attending to the Wonder and Vitality of Nature to Broadway Books. He will be joined by poet Brittney Corrigan, one of the contributors to the anthology.

A stunning gathering of creative nonfiction, research, and poetry, Sensoria transports readers into compelling stories and ethical reflections that stretch the limits of the moral imagination, calling attention to the wondrous ways in which humans and other-than-human beings experience and perceive the world. By exploring the sensorium among all forms of life endowed with different kinds of consciousness and communicative abilities, this volume highlights ecologically and socially diverse ways of touching the world with mind, and touching mind with the world.

Hailed by France Musique as the new face of the classical guitar, Djibouti-born French guitarist Raphaël Feuillâtre regularly delights audiences and critics worldwide with his charismatic artistry, embracing everything from Baroque-period repertoire to compositions by trailblazing contemporary composers. His jaw-dropping precision, technical mastery, and creative vision make works from all time periods sound as if they were written yesterday–alive, heartfelt, and filled with color. Don’t miss a passionate evening of Latin music, including many of Feuillâtre’s own arrangements.

The World’s MOST Iconic Ballet — With a LIVE Orchestra!

The legendary tale of Swan Lake takes flight in a breathtaking production from World Ballet Company, as fate and magic entwine in a timeless battle between good and evil. Performing with a Live Orchestra, and featuring a cast of 50 international dancers, over 150 radiant hand-sewn costumes, and stunning hand-crafted sets, this spellbinding ballet captures every heart-pounding moment — from the Dance of the Little Swans to the Black Swan’s 32 fouettés, and every pirouette in between.

With Tchaikovsky’s unforgettable score soaring through the air and played LIVE, immerse yourself in this mesmerizing journey where dreams, heartbreak, and hope unfold right before your eyes.

Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes (including 20-minute intermission)
Audience: For ages 5 & over

*About the Company: Based in Los Angeles, and led by Sasha Gorskaya and Gulya Hartwick, World Ballet Company presents the most beloved and iconic ballets of our time in cities nationwide. Driven by the belief that ballet is for everyone, performances appeal to newcomers and seasoned ballet goers alike. The company attracts many international artists and comprises renowned professional dancers representing over ten countries.

To date, World Ballet Company has traveled to more than 300 cities, reaching an audience of more than 500,000 fans.

Make it a group experience! Special pricing is available for groups of 10 or more.

Acclaimed Athens-based chamber ensemble Galan Trio visits Lewis & Clark College as part of their US tour for a performance on Friday, November 6, 2026 at 7:30pm in Agnes Flanagan Chapel.

Join Mary Miller Doyle and friends for a presentation of Wonder Is a Lovely Place to Be: 365 Days of Wit, Wisdom, and Irrepressible Imagination by Brian Doyle and Mary Miller Doyle. Drawing from both beloved and previously unpublished Brian Doyle works, this collection of essays, poems and sketches invites readers to notice holiness woven through ordinary, everyday moments.

Mary Miller Doyle and John and Cindy McPhee will read passages from Wonder is a Lovely Place to Be and retired Lake Oswego Public Library director Bill Baars will host. We'll also be serving apple and marionberry pie, Brian's favorite flavors.

Brian Doyle (1956-2017) was the author of many books, including the novels Mink River and The Plover; The Grail, his account of a year in a pinot noir vineyard in Oregon; and The Wet Engine, a memoir about his infant son’s heart surgery and the young doctor who saved his life. He edited Portland Magazine at the University of Portland.

This program is supported by the Friends of the Lake Oswego Public Library. Participation is free, and no registration is required. Please note, seating is limited due to the size of the space. Seats will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.A livestream will be available.

Lake Oswego Public Library is located at 706 Fourth Street, Lake Oswego. For more information, contact Alicia Yokoyama at 503-534-4228 or [email protected]

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This fall, Portland welcomes an extraordinary celebration of classical ballet as PRIMA Ballet Gala brings together artists of the Grand Kyiv Ballet and international guest performers for one unforgettable night.

More than a performance, PRIMA Ballet Gala is a night of elevated artistry – where timeless classics meet contemporary expression, and the stage becomes a space of beauty, power, and emotion.

The program features iconic highlights from world-renowned ballets including Don Quixote, Spartacus, and The Dying Swan, alongside vibrant national dance such as the thrilling Hopak, set to music by legendary composers including Tchaikovsky.

Begin your evening on the red carpet, then step inside for a celebration of artistic excellence and international cultural connection.
Guests are warmly encouraged to attend in the evening attire, helping create an atmosphere of elegance worthy of this special occasion.

Join us for a rare opportunity to experience world-class dancers, timeless choreography, and a night filled with beauty and inspiration.

Seats are limited. Be part of PRIMA Ballet Gala — where ballet speaks from the heart.

Hailing from Germany, the three Schumann brothers have been playing together since childhood. Together with their violist colleague, Matthew McDowell, they communicate with an openness and curiosity that has gained them a reputation as one of the most exciting string quartets performing today.

WOLF Italian Serenade MOZART Quartet in G Major, K. 73f IVES Quartet No. 2 BRAHMS Quartet in A minor, Op. 51, No. 2

November 15, 2026

Family Series

Alice McLerran’s classic children’s book The Mountain that Loved a Bird tells a heartwarming story of unlikely friendship between a barren mountain and a visiting bird named Joy. Experience Portland-based composer Caroline Shaw’s musical interpretation of the story as the book is narrated live in this celebration of friendship that teaches us the transformative power of kindness and care.

• Su-Han Yang Harold & Arlene Schnitzer Associate Conductor
• Pam Mahon Narrator
• Dance West Jason Davis, Artistic & Technical Director
• Pacific Youth Choir Chris Maunu, Artistic Director; Amber Schroeder, Associate Conductor
• Oregon Symphony

This concert is part of the Family Series, and is eligible for the Choose Your Own Series (Portland only).

This concert is part of the 2026/27 Sounds Like Portland festival.

Oregon Jewish Voices 2026 November 5, 2026 Admission: $10 general admission, $5 for members with code on back of membership card Location: OJMCHE Auditorium Share × " class="share-btn"> Share on Facebook &text=Oregon Jewish Voices 2026" class="share-btn"> Share on Twitter Email Thursday, November 5 | 7pm start time, doors open at 6:30pm Started in 1999 and organized by writer Willa Schneberg, this annual event features readings by prominent Oregon Jewish poets and writers. The writers in the 2026 program span a range of genres, including fiction, poetry, playwriting, and nonfiction. Each author will share selections from their work. About the Speakers Ayelet Amittay is a poet and psychiatric nurse practitioner in Eugene, Oregon. Her first book, The Eating Knife , is an extended Midrash on the Akedah—the binding of Isaac. It was published by Fernwood Press in 2025. Her chapbook, Therapy Room , won second place in the 2024 3-Day International Chapbook Contest. Ayelet’s poems appear in Gulf Coast , Michigan Quarterly Review , Rattle , Critica Press , Tupelo Quarterly , Pleiades , and others. She received fellowships from the Yiddish Book Center and the Martha’s Vineyard Institute of Creative Writing . Find her at www.ayeletpoet.com or on Instagram @ayeletpoet. Rachel Attias is a writer, educator, and editor based in Portland. Her writing has appeared in n+1 , Porter House Review , X-R-A-Y, and more, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and Best Small Fictions. She holds an MFA from Oregon State University, and teaches writing at Portland Community College and around the Pacific Northwest. She is also part of Art/Lab’s 2026 Fellowship Cohort, which empowers Portland-area Jewish artists and culture bearers. Her writing is concerned with present and ancestral relationships, our changing natural world, memory, time, and everyday absurdity. Find Rachel at www.rachelattias.com . Daniel Isaiah Elder Daniel Isaiah Elder writes fiction and nonfiction. He was awarded a 2026 Susan Kamil Emerging Writers Prize and received a Lambda Literary Emerging LGBTQ Writer fellowship, as well as an Art/Lab fellowship for Jewish writers. He works as a bookseller at a small independent bookstore, and at Lidia Yuknavitch’s alternative workshop organization, Corporeal Writing. His essays and fiction have appeared in The Rumpus, Catapult, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, Witch Craft Magazine, and many more. He lives in Portland, Oregon, with his partner and their blended family

Develop your writing in a welcoming, creative environment alongside friends and local best-selling YA author Jamie Pacton. This is time to write, share ideas, ask questions, and meet other teen writers!

Internationally renowned concert organist Nathan Laube presents an exciting recital of thrilling organ music from a wide variety of eras and locales. This one-of-a-kind program features a diverse selection of works by Felix Mendelssohn, Dieterich Buxtehude, Charles-Marie Widor, and more. Laube's 75-minute recital showcases both his dazzling technique and his profound gift of listening carefully to the instrument and eliciting from it a thrilling range of musical colors — a combination perfectly suited to the world-class Rosales organ. He'll explore the organ’s full range of tonal colors throughout the program, which is offered in celebration of the organ's 40th birthday this year.

Nathan Laube, a truly generational talent of the time, is one of the world’s most elite organ performers and pedagogues. He is Associate Professor of Organ on the faculty of the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York and International Consultant in Organ Studies at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in the United Kingdom. His extensive international recital career takes him continually to major concert venues and festivals around the world.

Trinity's pipe organ, built by Manuel Rosales and installed in 1986, is one of the finest pipe organs in North America. Trinity Music is the professional music program of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, comprising the Cathedral Schola, Trinity Choir, and Choir School; a concert series featuring nationally recognized guest artists; and the acclaimed Rosales organ, all in one of Portland's finest acoustic spaces.

the tudor choir
+ doug fullington

Tudor England (c1485–1603) was deeply unstable — yet monuments of its Latin sacred music survived, including the Sarum rite chant used before the Reformation. This chant formed the basis of devotional works by Taverner, Sheppard, Fayrfax, and Tye. It appears directly in several pieces on this program — among them Sheppard’s deeply moving Libera nos, whose chant melody is shown here. This music is inseparable too from the stone abbeys and cathedrals it was made to fill. These Stones Remain restores these masterworks to their spiritual home, performed by the Northwest’s own Tudor Choir.

• Sacred Masterworks from Tudor England

Monthly on every first Tuesday

We want your BOLD stories!

Come to our monthly open mic to share your latest work in progress or previously published piece. We welcome short stories, personal essays, poetry, slam, and other spoken word art forms.

10% off for performers!

BOLD is a safe place. We strive to uplift stories by and about people from underrepresented and diverse communities. We do not tolerate hate speech of any kind.

See you there!

How do you celebrate the birthday of Adolphe Sax? With plenty of saxophones, of course!

Join the PSU Saxophone Studio for a spirited evening honoring the saxophone’s inventor. Featuring a saxophone octet, two quartets and student soloists, this celebration explores a variety of musical styles—from the lyrical to the lively—with plenty of saxophone personality.

Bring your friends, bring your family and help us celebrate the man who started it all!

Learn more about Portland State University's bands.

This is our last meeting of 2026! Because our meeting this month falls the week of Thanksgiving, we'll do a casual and fun potluck in person with some sort of writing game (to be determined).

Please bring some food to share. The library will provide the game.

Book Bar is a five-day pop-up bar, café and cultural clubhouse in the heart of downtown Portland during Portland Book Festival week. Stop in for drinks, food, conversation and a rotating lineup of literary-inspired performances, pop-ups and unexpected happenings.

On Wednesday night, 45th Parallel Universe presents a celebration of Allen Ginsberg, featuring live readings of Howl and other works accompanied by live jazz.

The evening brings together voices from Portland’s literary, music, theater and radio communities for a tribute to one of the most influential figures in American poetry, and to Howl, which Ginsberg first read publicly in Portland while studying at Reed College.

Featured participants include Gregory Scholl, Robert McBride, Fred Child, Alexis Hamilton and additional special guests.