World-renowned cellist Carlos Prieto ’59 returned to campus for an event to perform and to discuss his new memoir, “Mi Vida Musical.” At the April 9 event in the Samberg Conference Center, Prieto spoke about his formative years at MIT and his subsequent career as a professional cellist. The talk was followed by performances of J.S. Bach’s “Cello Suite No. 3” and Eugenio “Toussaint’s Bachriation.” Valerie Chen, a 2022 Sudler Prize winner and Emerson/Harris Fellow, also performed Phillip Glass’s “Orbit.” Prieto was born in Mexico City and began studying the cello when he was 4. He graduated ..read more

What happens when a bunch of students used to drinking from a firehose decide to channel their energy into musical theater? If what you’re picturing is a bit chaotic, you’re on the right track. For more than 50 years, the MIT Music Theater Guild (MTG) has put on epic performances that are equal parts ambitious, impressive, and creative. From “Rocky Horror Picture Show” to original remakes of superhero blockbusters and everything in between, the productions are, above all else, entertaining. “At its core, it’s just students being passionate about the art they are creating and giving back to the ..read more

Four outstanding undergraduate teachers and mentors have been named MacVicar Faculty Fellows: professor of electrical engineering and computer science (EECS) Karl Berggren, professor of political science Andrea Campbell, associate professor of music Emily Richmond Pollock, and professor of EECS Vinod Vaikuntanathan. For more than 30 years, the MacVicar Faculty Fellows Program has recognized exemplary and sustained contributions to undergraduate education at MIT. The program is named in honor of Margaret MacVicar, MIT’s first dean for undergraduate education and founder of the Undergraduate Res ..read more

When listening to music, the human brain appears to be biased toward hearing and producing rhythms composed of simple integer ratios — for example, a series of four beats separated by equal time intervals (forming a 1:1:1 ratio). However, the favored ratios can vary greatly between different societies, according to a large-scale study led by researchers at MIT and the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics and carried out in 15 countries. The study included 39 groups of participants, many of whom came from societies whose traditional music contains distinctive patterns of rhythm not fou ..read more

A lot of behind-the-scenes work goes into creating an art installation or a theater production – not just by those making or performing their craft, but also by the staff members who coordinate the logistics of exhibits and events. One of the people at MIT who helps artists bring their projects to life is Lydia Brosnahan.   In her role as associate producer in the Office of the Arts, Brosnahan works with several different arts initiatives including the MIT Center for Art, Science and Technology (CAST) and the Council for the Arts at MIT (CAMIT).   “The arts at MIT are alive ..read more

Seated at the grand piano in MIT’s Killian Hall last fall, first-year student Jacqueline Wang played through the lively opening of Mozart’s “Sonata in B-flat major, K.333.” When she’d finished, Mi-Eun Kim, pianist and lecturer in MIT’s Music and Theater Arts Section (MTA), asked her to move to the rear of the hall. Kim tapped at an iPad. Suddenly, the sonata she'd just played poured forth again from the piano — its keys dipping and rising just as they had with Wang’s fingers on them, the resonance of its strings filling the room. Wang stood among a row of empty seats with a slightly bemused ex ..read more

MIT Music and Theater Arts Assistant Professor Miguel Zenón has won a Grammy for Best Latin Jazz Album for his work on “El Arte Del Bolero Vol. 2.” Zenón recorded the album with Luis Perdomo, a follow-up to their critically-acclaimed “El Arte Del Bolero Vol. 1.” “I’m incredibly happy and honored with this Grammy win,” says Zenón, a 12-time Grammy nominee. “We’ve been making albums for a long time, so it’s extremely rewarding to earn this recognition. This will certainly be an incentive to keep moving forward and creating more music.” The album’s title references the beauty of the Latin-America ..read more

Around 50 musicians crowd the well-lit Kresge Auditorium stage. They wear formal black attire and concentrated facial expressions. As the conductor carefully raises her baton, the audience comes to a perfect silence. A single piano lets forth a delicate cascade of high-pitched notes and is soon joined by a dozen violins that burst into a catchy, fast-paced melody. Many audience members look at their friends and smile. They recognize the tune. The 90-minute performance goes on to incorporate saxophones, cellos, percussion instruments, a French horn, and a variety of other instruments. But with ..read more

John LaBoiteaux Buttrick, a former professor in MIT’s Music and Theater Arts Section and prize-winning pianist, died in late November, 2023, in Zurich, Switzerland. He was 88. Buttrick joined the humanities faculty at MIT in 1966, where he lectured and taught as a professor of humanities and music. He served as the head of MIT’s music section from 1967 to 1976. He taught introduction to music subjects as part of the humanities requirement and was, according to colleague and MIT professor Marcus Thompson, “very popular.”  Buttrick was born Dec. 15, 1934. He grew up in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvan ..read more

More than 1,500 students enroll in music classes each year at MIT. More than 500 student musicians participate in one of 30 on-campus ensembles. In spring 2025, to better provide for its thriving musical program, MIT will inaugurate its new music building, a 35,000-square-foot three-volume facility adjacent to Kresge Auditorium. The new building will feature high-quality rehearsal and performance spaces, a professional recording studio, classrooms, and laboratories for the music technology program. Keeril Makan is the Michael (1949) and Sonja Koerner Music Composition Professor, section head o ..read more