Please Note: This event is being hosted at the Shirley-Eustis House but is not planned or coordinated by Shirley-Eustis House staff. All questions should be directed to the Musicians of the Old Post Road.
Musicians of the Old Post Road will present “Ben Franklin’s Musical Curiosity”
Sunday, May 3, 2026, 4:00 pm
The Carriage House at Shirley-Eustis House, Boston, MA
Tickets $10-$55, kids come free with an adult
Two-time winner of the Noah Greenberg Award from the American Musicological Society, Musicians of the Old Post Road concludes its 37th season in May with Ben Franklin’s Musical Curiosity. This program explores the founding father’s musical relationships and confluences here in our fledgling Republic and abroad in Paris, where he served as ambassador to France.
Performances will be presented on May 2 at 4 pm at the Museum of Worcester and online, and May 3 at 4 pm at the Shirley-Eustis House in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood. The weekend’s concerts are the fourth and final installment of the ensemble’s “Cross-Pollinations” season, celebrating inspiration among composers and across cultures in four programs exemplifying the ensemble’s signature style of performing musical “rediscoveries” alongside beloved 18th-century works.
Benjamin Franklin was the most intellectually and culturally curious of this country’s founders. Born in Boston, he is most well-known as a scientist, inventor, diplomat, author, and of course a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. What people might not know is that he was also an amateur musician and music critic. Throughout his life, he developed relationships with musicians and tastemakers in both the young United States and in France, where he served as ambassador. In America, he made music with Thomas Jefferson and Francis Hopkinson, and corresponded with the first American-born Classical composer, John Antes. In Paris, Franklin befriended Anne Louise Brillon de Jouy, a talented composer and musical salon hostess, whose weekly gatherings he attended for years.
From his time in America, pieces featured in this program include two songs by Francis Hopkinson (whom Franklin referred to as “the American Muse”), a string trio by John Antes, and a string quartet composed by Franklin himself (the only known piece attributed to him). Another song included is “The Stol’n Kiss” by William Hayes, with alterations to the text made by Franklin as part of his lighthearted flirtation with Brillon de Jouy. From his French experience, the ensemble will perform works from Brillon de Jouy’s collection, including a trio for piano, flute and cello by J.C. Bach, and a violin sonata by Jean-Pierre Pagin (a frequent performer at her salons). Works by the estimable salon hostess herself include her Marche des Insurgents, written to celebrate America’s 1777 victory at Saratoga. The program concludes with an excerpt from Louis-Charles Demignaux’s Hymne à l’amitié, a cantata performed in 1783 in honor of Benjamin Franklin during his visit to a Masonic lodge at the court of Versailles. This occasion was only a few months before the Peace of Paris, which marked the end of the American Revolutionary War. This performance will mark the New England premiere of this piece.
These performances will be united with the historic venues of the Museum of Worcester and Boston’s Shirley-Eustis House, where Franklin was a frequent visitor. Built in 1747 by Royal Governor William Shirley, this “country estate” served as a hub for colonial elites, also hosting such notable figures as George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette. This will be the ensemble’s first time performing at this location, which was selected specifically for its unique connection to Benjamin Franklin and the important people and events of the American Revolution.
Musicians for these concerts, all of whom will play on period instruments, include flutist Suzanne Stumpf, violinist Sarah Darling, violinist Jesse Irons, violist and violinist Marcia Cassidy, cellist Daniel Ryan, and guest pianist April Sun, who will perform on a historic fortepiano built in America shortly after 1800. The ensemble will be joined by soprano Emily Siar.
This program has been selected by the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism as part of the MA250 initiative, featuring events that aim to reveal the lesser-known stories of our fledgling republic at the time of the American Revolution. The program is funded, in part, by the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism.
Single In-Person Tickets are $55 general admission, $50 seniors, $35 for under 35. Kids 18 and under are free with an adult. Day-Of-Concert Rush Tickets (students and EBT Card holders only) are $10, availability permitting. Virtual single tickets and virtual subscriptions are also available. For more information, visit www.oldpostroad.org, email musicians@oldpostroad.org, or call 781-466-6694.
About Musicians of the Old Post Road
Musicians of the Old Post Road takes its name from its acclaimed concert series that brings period instrument performances of music of the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries to beautiful historic buildings along New England’s fabled Old Post Road, the first thoroughfare to connect Boston and New York City in the late 17th century.
Winner of the 1998 and 2023 Noah Greenberg Award from the American Musicological Society, Musicians of the Old Post Road has also received programming awards from Early Music America, Chamber Music America and the US-Mexico Fund for Culture. The ensemble has toured in Germany, Austria, and Mexico, and has appeared at festivals and on concert series in the US, including the Indianapolis Early Music Festival, the Boston Early Music Festival Concert Series, the Castle Hill Festival, the Artists Series at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, and the Connecticut Early Music Festival. The ensemble has held a residency at Dartmouth College and was featured on WCVB television’s “Chronicle” program and 99.5 All Classical radio’s “Live from Fraser” program.
The ensemble’s discography includes seven recordings that have each been praised in the US and abroad. They include: The Virtuoso Double Bass (Titanic, 1994), Trios and Scottish Song Settings of J. N. Hummel (Meridian, 1999), Galant with an Attitude: Music of Juan and José Pla (Meridian, 2000), Quartets of Telemann and Bodinus (Meridian, 2004), Feliz Navidad: Christmas from Spain and New Spain (Meridian, 2008), Roman Handel (Centaur, 2013), and Earthly Baroque (Centaur, 2017). The ensemble’s 8th CD, Into the Light, featuring music by Christoph Graupner, was released in September 2025 to rave reviews.