July 28, 2026: Bang on a Can 2026

It’s the time of year where an intrepid trio of musicians and composers invite other adventurous writers and players of music to the northern Berkshires for weeks of intense creation and communion. Bang on a Can’s Loud Weekend starts this Thursday, July 30 at Mass MoCA in North Adams, the culmination of their Summer Workshop which invites young musicians to attend for weeks of intense study. Each year the festival brings those fellows that have been living and creating together onto the many stages of the museum to show works they've built and created throughout that time, along with luminaries of music composition and performance from all over the world. We chat with Bang on a Can and festival co-founder Julia Wolfe about this years group of fellows, and the works that she and her fellow founders will have performed over the course of the festival’s three days. And with workshop alums and beyond Shelley Washington and Karl Larson, both of whom will perform at this year’s festival, about their time in the program and how it’s influenced their work and performances in the intervening years. Plus, we’ll get to listen in on the rehearsal of one of the festival’s spotlight compositions from Bang on a Can All Star Ken Thompson “We Stay the Same”, and a performance of the haunting "Ghost Song" with Karl Larkin as well, both of which will premiere this weekend.