• Cellist Alisa Weilerstein playing solo in the middle of a circle of wooden set pieces, all different sizes, illuminated pink.
  • Cellist Alisa Weilerstein playing solo in the middle of a circle of wooden set pieces, all different sizes, illuminated pink.
  • Cellist Alisa Weilerstein playing solo in the middle of a circle of wooden set pieces, all different sizes, illuminated pink.
  • Cellist Alisa Weilerstein playing solo in the middle of a circle of wooden set pieces, all different sizes, illuminated pink.
  • Cellist Alisa Weilerstein playing solo in the middle of a circle of wooden set pieces, all different sizes, illuminated pink.

Alisa Weilerstein: FRAGMENTS

Introduction

In Alisa Weilerstein’s ground-breaking performance series FRAGMENTS, new music by some of the most compelling composers of our time meets the timeless beauty of Bach’s Six Suites for Solo Cello.

New commissions by 27 different composers are interwoven with the individual movements of the Bach Suites. The result is a collection of six different FRAGMENTS performances in total, curated by Alisa and underscored with bespoke lighting, scenic architecture and costume design from a world-class team of creatives. Each of the six FRAGMENTS performances embodies it's own striking identity that transforms the Bach Cello suites in turn.

FRAGMENTS 1 | Wonder - Allison Loggins-Hull, Gili Schwarzman, Joan Tower, Johann Sebastian Bach, Reinaldo Moya, Chen Yi

FRAGMENTS 2 | Tumult- Alan Fletcher, Ana Sokolovic, Caroline Shaw, Daniel Kidane, Gity Razaz, Johann Sebastian Bach

FRAGMENTS 3 | Emergence- Carlos Simon, Jeffrey Mumford, Joseph Hallman, Johann Sebastian Bach, Thomas Larcher

FRAGMENTS 4 | Labyrinth - Courtney Bryan, Gabriel Kahane, Johann Sebastian Bach, Matthias Pintscher, Missy Mazzoli, Paul Wiancko

FRAGMENTS 5 | Lament - Gabriela Lena Frank, Gabriella Smith, Gerard McBurney, Johann Sebastian Bach, Mathilde Wantenaar, Osvaldo Golijov

FRAGMENTS 6 | Radiance - Andy Akiho, Gabriela Lena Frank, Gabriella Smith, Jessie Montgomery, Johann Sebastian Bach, Tania León

Each FRAGMENTS performance is around 60 minutes of music with no pause, no programme, in which Alisa invites the audience to simply immerse themselves in the dramatic power of live performance.

“My greatest hope is to deepen connection between audience and artist through a series of unique performances that embrace the world we live in without sacrificing the intellectual and aesthetic qualities that make this artform such a singular mode of human expression.” – Alisa Weilerstein

Composers

Alan Fletcher, Allison Loggins-Hull, Ana Sokolović, Andy Akiho, Carlos Simon, Caroline Shaw, Courtney Bryan, Daniel Kidane, Gabriel Kahane, Gabriela Lena Frank, Gabriela Smith, Gerard McBurney, Gili Schwarzman, Gity Razaz, Jeffrey Mumford, Jessie Montgomery, Joan Tower, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joseph Hallman, Mathilde Wantenaar, Matthias Pintscher, Missy Mazzoli, Osvaldo Golijov, Paul Wiancko, Reinaldo Moya, Tania Leon, Thomas Larcher, Chen Yi

Creative Team

Alisa Weilerstein, Project Creator, Performer Elkhanah Pulitzer, Director Seth Reiser, Scenic and Lighting Designer Carlos J. Soto / Molly Irelan, Costume Design Hanako Yamaguchi, Artistic Producer / Advisor

Contact

Emma Beecham

Emma Beecham

Associate Director
Rebecca Moore

Rebecca Moore

Assistant Project Manager

Connect

Scheduled Performances

  • May 2025
    North America

    Alisa Weilerstein (Soloist) Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall Programme revealed after the performance.

Photos

Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performing encircled by light boxes
Alisa Weilerstein performing on a pyre of light boxes
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performs encircled by light boxes
Alisa Weilerstein performing against a dark material backdrop
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performs amongst some scattered light boxes
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performing on top of a pyre of lit boxes
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performing amidst light boxes
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performing in front of illuminated dark material
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performs in a green haze amongst set boxes
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein performs in front of pink light boxes

News

Press

  • FRAGMENTS 1

    Carnegie Hall, New York
    Apr 2023 - Apr 2024

    • The program’s final piece, a greatest hit saved for last, was Bach’s Prelude, the suite’s first movement. It felt as though the preceding 60 minutes had been building to this pure, epiphanic point, turning an ending into another beginning.

  • FRAGMENTS 1

    Severance Music Center, Cleveland
    May 2023 - May 2023

    • With her powerful, rich, and sensitive sound, Weilerstein adapted easily to both contemporary and Baroque demands. The cellist played for 65 minutes without intermission... After a reflective movement of Bach, she would pause for just a few seconds before launching into something new — anything from neo-Romantic to contemporary with extended techniques.

  • Kennedy Centre, Washington Performing Arts

    Washington DC
    Apr 2025 - Apr 2024

    • As Weilerstein launched into the visceral opening bars of Fragment 4 — I sensed a shift of energy in the audience: you could have heard the proverbial pin drop... There was everything here; sonic colours and textures that brought to my mind a fractal in multi-dimensions: history, future, the now.

  • Boston Globe feature: FRAGMENTS 2

    Tanglewood
    Aug 2023 - Aug 2023

    • “Epiphanies don’t happen often... but when they do they’re a lot of fun.” - Alisa Weilerstein