January Recital Week: Cello Choir
2026-01-24 18:30 (America/New_York) | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
See the PCM Cello Choir as they perform for you in this free concert showcasing their hard work and dedication.

WMPG's Jazz at the Movies | Music Pictures: New Orleans
2026-01-31 19:00 - 21:30 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
JAM presents the film”Music Pictures: New Orleans”, Sat., January 31st.
WMPG’s Jazz At The Movies and the Portland Conservatory of Music are pleased to present our first film of the 2026 season, the documentary “Music Pictures: New Orleans”. Beautifully shot and recorded, the film is a loving portrait of four Crescent City jazz, soul, and blues legends, and a celebration of 100 years of New Orleans musical history.
Directed by New Orleans native filmmaker Ben Chace, “Music Pictures: New Orleans” is a vibrant documentary exploring the rich musical heritage of New Orleans. It showcases the city’s diverse musical landscape, from legendary jazz clubs to lively street performances, highlighting the influences of Creole, African American, and French cultures, and how historical events, like Mardi Gras and Hurricane Katrina, have shaped the city’s music scene. Through interviews with local musicians and historians, Music Pictures: New Orleans reveals music's central role in the city’s cultural and social fabric.
The film showcases four New Orleans music legends: Grammy-winning Irma Thomas “The Soul Queen of New Orleans” ; Benny Jones Sr., the leader and drummer of the world renowned Treme’ Brass Band; guitarist Little Freddie King, the “Last King of the Blues”; and the pianist and educator, Ellis Marsalis, Jr., patriarch of the famed jazz family, in what would be his last concert before his death. Music Pictures: New Orleans follows each of the four artists, one by one, as they talk about their lives, rehearse, and record a new album in the studio in early 2020s. By combining vintage footage with live interviews and rare backstage access, this film provides a wonderful snapshot of New Orleans as the home for so much great American music, from soul to brass band to jazz and the blues. What better way to get ready for the Mardi Gras season!
WMPG’s Jazz At The Movies invites you to come join us on Saturday, January 31st, 7PM, at Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St., Portland, for “ Music Pictures: New Orleans”. Admission is FREE, and donations are gladly accepted. Let the good times roll!

WMPG's Jazz at the Movies | Shhhh....It's Top Secret!
2026-02-21 19:00 - 21:30 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
Shhhhhhhhh….It’s top secret!!

As part of Black History Month, WMPG’s Jazz At The Movies is excited to present
a film so special we can’t even mention its name! A Sundance Film prize winner featuring
everyone from Stevie Wonder to Sly Stone and Nina Simone – a concert so epic that it’s been called “Harlem’s answer to Woodstock”…
Be ready to see and hear some of the baddest concert footage ever recorded. You won’t want to miss it, and it’s showing by special arrangement right here in Portland – One night only!

Saturday, February 21st, 7:00PM at the Portland Conservatory of Music, 29 Neal St.
Admission is FREE

Admission is FREE, and donations are gladly accepted.

240 Strings | Echoes Through Time and Story
2026-03-15 15:00 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
We explore the expressive voice of the flute as it travels across centuries and styles—from the ornate elegance of Baroque Italy with Vivaldi, through the evocative melodies of 20th-century film music by Nino Rota, to the vivid colors and playful spirit of Jacques Ibert’s modern French repertoire. Each piece invites listeners to experience the flute as a storyteller, painting vivid scenes and emotions with every note. We are thrilled to welcome our guest, Nicole Rabata, flute.
Guest Tim Paek, Cello
Anastasia Antonacos, Piano
Tracey Jasas-Hardel, Violin
Run Time: 90 minutes
Learn More

WMPG's Jazz at the Movies | Low Down
2026-03-21 19:00 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
WMPG’s Jazz At The Movies and The Portland Conservatory of Music are pleased to present “Low Down”, a film adaptation based on the first person memoir of A.J. Albany, the daughter of the great bebop jazz pianist Joe Albany. Back in the late 1940s, Albany had played with Mingus, Charlie Parker, and Lester Young, but by the early 1970s had faded into obscurity.
Shot in grainy 16 mm by cinematographer Jeff Preiss (who shot the beautiful 1990 Chet Baker documentary ”Let’s Get Lost”), and with a superb soundtrack with music from Joe Albany, Coleman Hawkins, Monk and Max Roach, Low Down is not just a jazz movie. It is the compelling and touching story of an adoring daughter’s love and forgiveness for a father who has fallen prey to hard times and unforgiving hard drugs. It is about one girl’s growing up, and about one man’s refusal to. And as Amy- Jo says, it’s really about the jazz that shaped her, and “a love story, a poem to my father, and also to Los Angeles.”
Among the stellar cast are Glen Close as the girls wise grandmother, Elle Fanning as Amy-Jo, and Ethan Hawkes as the jazz crazed pianist Joe Albany. Joe Albany, of course, was not alone in falling victim to the demon dope; it had taken the lives of such jazz greats as Charlie Parker and Billie Holiday. There is a sad but poignant beauty throughout this film about the downside of the jazz life. Like the music, it can be sweet and low down too.
Join us Saturday, March 21st, 7 PM for the “Low Down” at the Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St., Admission is free, and donations are gladly accepted.

Open Jazz Jam
2026-03-23 18:30 - 20:30, 2026-04-06 18:30 - 20:30, 2026-04-13 18:30 - 20:30, 2026-04-20 18:30 - 20:30 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
A free open Jazz Jam session. Bring your Real Book and jam with us!
No Registration Necessary

Portland Community Mandolin Orchestra
2026-03-27 19:00 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
An open letter to all lovers of the mandolin in Portland, Maine and it’s surrounding environs:
You are cordially invited to the final concert of the Portland Community Mandolin Orchestra on Friday, March 27th at 7pm, held at the Portland Conservatory of Music.
We have had an absolute blast working all this music up and can’t wait to share it with you! No tickets necessary – we can’t wait to see you.
Show – 7:00pm
Doors – 6:30pm

Open Jazz Jam
2026-03-30 18:30 - 20:30 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
An open Jazz Jam session. Bring your Real Book and jam with us!
No Registration Necessary

DIJ @ Mechanics' Hall | Vardan Ovsepian Spiderweb Project
2026-04-02 19:00 | Mechanics’ Hall, 519 Congress St, Portlan, ME, United States
OVERVIEW
Mechanics’ Hall, the Armenian Cultural Association of Maine & the Portland Conservatory of Music present the pianist/composer with his band

Our ballroom transforms into a jazz sanctuary with Vardan Ovsepian and his unforgettable Spiderweb Project:
“Vardan Ovsepian’s Spiderweb Project emphasizes the choices and actions we make, sending vibrations through the wider web, affecting others, and shaping our own reality. What you weave today becomes the foundation for your life tomorrow.”
Ovsepian blends classical refinement with fearless jazz improvisation, weaving melodies that ripple outward like a living web. The artist is joined by Vinicius Gomes (guitar), Joshua Davis (bass), and Austin McMahon (drums).
Peter Erskine writes, “Vardan brings his own sound and ingredients… I have never heard any musician quite like him in terms of harmonic awareness and melodic power. I suspect that he will prove to be quite a sensation…”
Thursday, April 2 at 7:00 PM (doors 6:30 PM). $15 for Mechanics’ Hall Members, $20 for general admission. There is a $5 surcharge on the day of the show. No one turned away for lack of funds.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Vardan Ovsepian is an Armenian-born pianist/composer whose studies include Yerevan State Conservatory, Estonian Music Academy, Helsinki Jazz Conservatory, and Berklee College of Music.
From the early years, Vardan was fascinated by the blend of western classical music with jazz, and has been in perpetual search for unique ways of incorporating the hybrid formation in his composing and improvising. Consequently, his semi-large chamber ensemble (VOCE) was formed in 2005, focusing on the cinematic approach in the musical narrative.
Throughout the years, Vardan developed a remarkable angular geometric world, connected to his background in chess, and his attraction to minimalism and contemporary architecture, resulting in the publication of 2 books: Mirror Exercises (2011) and Permutation Studies (2020).
Another spotlight is the “Fractal Limit” duet with Tatiana Parra, which received immense international recognition. The project showcases Vardan’s remarkable technical proficiency and capacity to articulate contrapuntal textures.
In addition to VOCE and Fractal Limit, Vardan has collaborated with artists like Mick Goodrick, Peter Erskine, Jerry Bergonzi, Tim Miller, Ben Monder, David Binney, and has released 20+ albums as a leader and co-leader.
PARKING & TRANSPORTATION
Mechanics’ Hall is located at 519 Congress Street. Our main entrance is between Loquat Shop and the Art Mart. The Greater Portland Metro’s Congress & Casco Street Stop is directly in front of our building, served by routes 1, 7, 8, and 9B.
Parking is available at the Arts District Garage, located on Casco and Brown Street, with a rate of $5 per hour. Metered street parking is available on Congress, Casco, Cumberland, Free Street, and other nearby streets. Free hourly street parking is available between Parris and Alder Street.
ACCESSIBILITY
To enter Mechanics’ Hall, patrons will need to navigate a single step or use a modular ramp. There is a wheelchair-accessible elevator.
If you have a wheelchair or need accessibility accommodations/questions, please contact us at programming@mainemechanics.org or 207-773-8396.

Tickets

Portland String Quartet | Carried in Song
2026-04-12 14:00 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
Carried in Song is a reflection on identity, personal voice, and cultural memory through the medium of a string quartet. The program opens with Iranian composer Aftab Darvishi’s Daughters of Sol, a piece that draws on a rich variety of musical traditions. With gentle transitions and delicate shifts in color, the piece evokes cycles of life and the quiet persistence of memory, moving fluidly between light and shadow, dissolution and return.
Boston-based Vartan Aghababian’s Armenian Suite follows as an exploration of heritage and spirituality, drawing from Armenian musical traditions to create a sound world of reverence and reflection. The program closes with Dmitri Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 2, written during a time of war and displacement. Woven with Jewish musical themes, it speaks with urgency and expressivity, capturing the resilience and traditions of voices passed down through generations.
The PSQ invites audiences to join them on this journey as they explore music as a vessel for what we carry, and for what carries us.
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WMPG's Jazz at the Movies
2026-04-18 19:00 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States

240 Strings | Bridging Centuries...
2026-05-03 15:00 | Portland Conservatory of Music, 28 Neal St, Portland, ME, 04102, United States
“Bridging Centuries…” traces a musical journey across three centuries, connecting the voices of Beethoven, Schumann, and contemporary composer Stacy Garrop. Beethoven’s “Archduke” Trio embodies the grandeur and lyricism of the Classical tradition, while Schumann’s passionate Trio in D minor reveals the Romantic spirit in full bloom. Between them, Stacy Garrop’s evocative work for piano trio offers a modern perspective, weaving vivid colors and narratives that speak directly to our time. Together, these works form a bridge of sound and expression, linking past and present in a dialogue that is as timeless as it is immediate.
We are delighted to feature guest cellist Marisa Solomon with the Portland Piano Trio, whose artistry brings added depth and richness to this exploration across centuries.
Marisa Solomon, Cello
Anastasia Antonacos, Piano
Tracey Jasas-Hardel, Violin
Run Time: 90 minutes
