Community Concerts at Second, Inc.

10/24/2026

We're getting ready for pianist Awadagin Pratt this Sunday! 🎉

For this concert, we have brought a rare Hamburg-built Steinway Model D Concert Grand Piano into the church. This special instrument was provided and tuned by Mary Schwendeman. It is nearly 9 feet long and weighs over 1,000 pounds.

What is a Hamburg-built Steinway piano?
Steinway pianos built in Hamburg are different than their NYC counterparts built in Astoria. Hamburg models utilize Renner actions and hammers, and are known for their cleaner, brighter, and more brilliant sound. However, Hamburg-made Model D concert grands are extremely rare in North America. This is a special opportunity to experience a performance on the instrument!

The program on Sunday is a perfect fit for the Hamburg Steinway sound: Mr. Pratt will preform canonical pieces by Brahms, Couperin and Frank alongside contemporary repertoire by Julius Eastman, Nathaniel Dett, Jeremy Jordan, Fred Hersch and Mikael Darmanie.

Hope to see you on Sunday!

📅 Sunday, October 25th, 2026, 3:30pm
🎟️ All of our concerts are FREE and no reservation is required
📍 Second Presbyterian Church, 4200 St Paul St, Baltimore, MD 21218

10/21/2026

📣 CC2nd Artist Spotlight on pianist AWADAGIN PRATT, preforming this Sunday October 25th:

Through his kaleidoscopic career as a pianist, conductor, educator, and curator of memorable musical moments, Awadagin Pratt shines a light on voices of the past and present, amplifies the diverse talents of today’s brightest creative minds, and paves the way for a new generation of inventive musical artists.

Since winning the Naumburg International Piano Competition in 1992 and receiving a 1994 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Pratt has received acclaim for delivering “forceful, imaginative, and precisely tinted” performances (The Washington Post) and been hailed as “one of the great and distinctive American pianists and conductors of our time” (WGBH).

He has appeared at addresses as familiar as 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (at the invitation of the Clinton and Obama administrations) and Sesame Street (at the invitation of Big Bird): He has performed with the Boston and Chicago Symphony Orchestras, the New York Philharmonic, and many others.

Pratt’s commitment to the next generation of pianists is evidenced by his work as founding director of the Next Generation Festival, the Art of the Piano Foundation, and the Nina Simone Piano Competition, a new biennial competition that celebrates diversity in classical music.

🎬 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GW8uN2mFLwc

We hope to see you there!

📅 Sunday, October 25, 2026, 3:30pm
🎟️ All of our concerts are FREE and no reservation is required
📍 Second Presbyterian Church, 4200 St Paul St, Baltimore, MD 21218
🌐 For more info: https://cc2nd.org

Awadagin Pratt plays Frederic Chopin's Nocturne, Op. 62, no. 1Thi...

10/17/2026

We're thrilled to announce our Oct 25th concert special guest- Awadagin Pratt!

Praised by The Washington Post as “one of this country’s most interesting and profound pianists,” Pratt is one of the most distinctive artists in American classical music. Winner of the Naumburg International Piano Competition and recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, on this concert he performs four monumental works that showcase both the grandeur and poetry of the piano.

📅 October 25th, 2026, 3:30pm
🎟️ FREE, no reservation is required
📍 Second Presbyterian Church, 4200 St Paul St, Baltimore, MD 21218
🌐 For more info: https://cc2nd.org

10/13/2026

On Sunday, October 4th, we were thrilled to present the incredible Brandon Woody and his band, Upendo. A full house was on hand to enjoy the group's performance--which is still available to enjoy on our YouTube channel! Special thanks to the sponsors of the concert, Leslie & Tom Owsley, as well as Second Presbyterian Church for hosting!

10/12/2026

10/04/2026

For those who cannot attend today's show with Brandon Woody & UPENDO, please tune in to the livestream on YouTube - here is the link:

SUN, OCT 4, 2026 | 3:30PMBRANDON WOODY’S UPENDOBrandon Woody, tru...

09/27/2026

Despite the nor'easter, we have a packed house today for the first Musicians of the Baltimore Symphony chamber concert of the season. Thanks to the brilliant musicians of the BSO and thanks as always to Second Pres for hosting!

09/27/2026

If you can't attend today's concert in person, please consider tuning in on our livestream:

SUN, SEP 27, 2026 | 3:30PMMUSICIANS OF THE BALTIMORE SYMPHONYMade...

09/25/2026

While we're busy preparing for this Sunday's concert (9/27), we are excited to share photos from the opening concert of the season on September 6th, featuring Vijay Gupta & Dominic Cheli!

The day was magical, and this is not hyperbole; more than 430 people attended the concert. Vijay and Dominic's program spanned three centuries, from Vitali’s dramatic Chaconne and Korngold’s charming music from Much Ado About Nothing to music by Reena Esmail and Brahms’s passionate Violin Sonata No. 3.

At the end of the concert, Vijay and Dominic were greeted with a warm and well-deserved standing ovation. Thanks to all of you for being such a warm and welcoming audience for our out-of-town artists!

Following the concert, audience members gathered for a reception and book signing celebrating Vijay’s new memoir, Restrung: A Memoir of Music and Transformation.

A special thank you to Julia Fleischaker and our wonderful partners at Greedy Reads, who joined us to sell books at the concert and reception. They were also enormously helpful in spreading word about the event.

We are deeply grateful to Vijay and Dominic for sharing their remarkable artistry with us, and to everyone who joined us in person and online for the opening of this milestone season.

Special thanks as well to The Peggy & Yale Gordon Trust for sponsoring the concert—and to our entire community for helping us continue the vision that has guided CC2nd for 40 years: Music for All, Free to All.

📷 Steve Ruark