Morton Feldman was born in New York City 100 years ago, and The Met is marking the centenary with two concerts in mid-November. The second one comes uptown: on Saturday, November 14, at 2 p.m., JACK Quartet and violinist Keir GoGwilt perform Feldman's Violin and String Quartet (1985) inside the 12th-century Fuentidueña Chapel at The Met Cloisters, 99 Margaret Corbin Drive in Fort Tryon Park.

The piece is one of the last works Feldman wrote before his death in 1987. The Met lists the run time at 2 hours and 15 minutes, played straight through with no intermission. Tickets start at $70, fees included, and each ticket also covers admission to the museum that day during regular hours.

Who Is Playing

JACK Quartet is Christopher Otto and Austin Wulliman on violin, John Pickford Richards on viola and Jay Campbell on cello. The group has spent roughly two decades focused on new and recent music, and The Met has booked it again for the season: in January the quartet returns to the Fifth Avenue building to premiere a new work by Otto in the European Paintings galleries.

For the Cloisters date the four are joined by Keir GoGwilt, who takes the solo violin part. As the title says, the work pairs a single violin with a full string quartet, so five string players share the stage.

Why the Chapel

The Fuentidueña Chapel dates to the 12th century, and The Met describes it as one of the most resonant rooms in New York City. The museum uses it for its seated concerts uptown, including the December holiday programs with New York Polyphony on December 5 and Trio Mediæval on December 6. The Met's own description of the Feldman program points to his slow-moving, quiet sound and its long sense of time, and the stone chapel is the setting it chose for that.

The First Half of the Centenary

The night before, on Friday, November 13, at 3 p.m., The Met presents Feldman's For Philip Guston (1984) in the atrium of the Robert Lehman Wing at The Met Fifth Avenue. That work runs about four and a half hours and reflects on Feldman's friendship with the painter Philip Guston. It is played by Alice Teyssier on flutes, Nathan Davis on percussion and Manuel Laufer Fair on piano and celesta. It is free with museum admission, and listeners may come and go at any point during the performance. Taken together, the two concerts give New Yorkers a chance to hear two of Feldman's long late pieces on back-to-back days.

Other Programs at the Cloisters This Season

The Cloisters keeps a full calendar around the concert, much of it free with admission:

  • Highlights of The Cloisters, a free guided tour, runs at 1 p.m. on open days.
  • Met Expert Talks: Changing Seasons are set for 3 p.m. on November 6, 13, 20 and 27.
  • Drop-in Drawing is at 1 p.m. on November 14, the same afternoon as the concert.
  • Family Afternoon: A Medieval Feast and How Did They Do That? Feasting are both at 1 p.m. on Sunday, November 15.

Closer to Halloween, The Met Cloisters is also running a free mask-making table with NYC Parks at Margaret Corbin Circle in Fort Tryon Park on Friday, October 30, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., followed by a Haunted Cottage in the park's Cottage Yard from 6:30 to 8 p.m.

Getting There

Take the A train to 190th Street, exit by elevator and walk north along Margaret Corbin Drive through Fort Tryon Park, about 10 minutes, or transfer to the M4 bus north one stop to Margaret Corbin Dr/Cloisters. For a fully step-free trip, The Met recommends the A train to 181st Street, then the M4 north seven stops. The M4 also runs from Madison Avenue at 83rd Street all the way to the Cloisters, a ride of about an hour and 25 minutes. The museum notes that weekend track work sometimes affects A train service, so check the MTA before heading up on a Saturday. Free parking is available in the park around the museum.

Inside the building there are about 60 stairs between the main entrance and the admissions desk, and a free shuttle is available for visitors who need step-free access. Children 6 and under are not admitted to Met Live Arts performances.

How to Go

The Cloisters is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day except Wednesday. Tickets for the November 14 concert are sold through The Met's event page, and the Friday performance of For Philip Guston is listed on its own page. For accessible seating, The Met's event ticketing line is 212-570-3949. General Cloisters admission is pay what you wish for New York State residents and $30 for other adults; details are on the Cloisters visit page.

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