What we're playing right now.
Live performances in Portland and across the country. Chamber music decided collectively — no conductor, every voice equal.
Full calendar with dates and ticketsCurrent programs
See all datesSongbook
Featuring acclaimed jazz vocalist Vuyo Sotashe and Grammy-nominated pianist Chris Patishall. Songbook celebrates the rich musical heritage of Sotashe's home country, South Africa — traditional folk songs in Zulu, Sepedi, and Xhosa alongside string works by Bongani Ndodana-Breen and originals by Sotashe, all in fresh arrangements by Patishall. An exploration of connections between American jazz, South African tradition, and European classical music.
But There Is This
An exploration of life's search for meaning through works by Corigliano, Mustonen, Yoshimatsu, and Shostakovich. Fragments of themes emerge over time, imperfectly revealing themselves as part of a larger whole — an invitation to perceive beauty in the details even when the whole remains unclear. Named for a line by Barbara Ras.
Rise and Shine
A celebration of the viola — the unsung heartbeat and sonic glue of chamber music. Twentieth-century viola quartets by Kenji Bunch and York Bowen alongside new folk arrangements by Palaver violists Elizabeth Moore and Lysander Jaffe. With special guest violist Sam Kelder.
Community & School Events
Our live calendar is always up to date. Tickets, location details, and last-minute changes are posted there first.
Chamber music made by conversation, heard up close.
Palaver's concerts are different from what you may expect. There's no conductor — the musicians make every interpretive decision together, in rehearsal and in the moment. What you hear is the result of genuine collective negotiation, and you can often feel that in the room.
We play in Portland venues that keep audiences close to the music — Merrill Auditorium, St. Luke's Cathedral, and community spaces where the chamber part of "chamber music" feels true. We also perform nationally with presenters who share our commitments.
No conductor. Every decision collective.
Most programs without intermission unless noted.
Merrill Auditorium, St. Luke's Cathedral, and community spaces throughout the city.
Sliding-scale and community pricing available at many concerts.
Past seasons
Women, queer, trans, and nonbinary composers from the medieval period to the present
Jessie Montgomery, Hildegard von Bingen, inti figgis-vizueta, Lili Boulanger and more. Toured Portland, Cambridge, Brooklyn, Putney, and Lewiston.
Season archiveA Change is Gonna Come
Grammy-nominated. Reviewed in Gramophone, The Guardian, and Musical America. Sam Cooke, Nina Simone, Joni Mitchell, and Dvořák in the same conversation.
Hear the recordingReady or Not
Works by female composers across centuries — the programming that became Palaver's debut album. "Blew the tent flap open to embrace new contemporary classical fans." — Midwest Record
Hear the recordingBe first to know.
Concert announcements, new season programming, and early access — occasional and worth reading.