Two and a half years in the making, The Mill in Westport NY is thrilled to open its doors on JUNE 28th for its inaugural concert in the extraordinary Great Room. Located in the rural Adirondack Park, The Mill is the visionary concept of its Creative Director, Taylor Haskins, to transform a historic former grain mill into a beacon of culture. The Great Room is a warm and welcoming 2,000 square foot listening space with 23 foot ceilings and rough-sawn wood paneled walls. The psychedelic-leaning herringbone pattern will soon be the backdrop for a luminous stained glass window designed by renowned painter and public artist Amy Ellingson along with a majestic, faceted and back-illuminated polypropylene sculpture created on site by acclaimed installation artist Stephen Hendee. Enveloping the audience in light and color, the room exudes concert hall acoustics while creating the feeling of an intimate venue.

The Mill’s first season will feature ten internationally renowned musical artists. Curated by longtime Westport resident, Taylor Haskins, who is known for his cutting edge curatorial vision which brought thousands of listeners to Soundwaves at Ballard Park from 2014-2017 with musicians including Anais Mitchell, Colin Stetson, Brandee Younger, and Julian Lage, who have all since added Grammy™ and Tony™ awards to their names. Haskins began his career as a performing artist at the age of 19 and has since toured the globe and recorded with many legendary musicians such as Maynard Ferguson, Nels Cline, Richard Bona, and Dave Holland, with whom Haskins was awarded a Grammy™ in 2005. He has released 11 albums under his name, and is also an accomplished composer of music for television and film. Since  2020, Haskins has been the host of The Thread, curating a weekly radio program broadcast on North Country Public Radio (NCPR) that weaves listeners through the mosaic of Black American Music and all that it influences, celebrating the bleeding edge of new music releases in this category. Taylor brings his deep knowledge and extensive experience in music to inhabit The Mill’s extraordinary Great Room with an inspiring progressive musical performance program.

Haskins says, “Touring the world as a trumpet player for over 25 years, I learned that making music meant giving something to people. When I moved to the Adirondacks in 2010, I knew that if I was going to keep giving that gift, I would have to create a beacon that drew listeners from all over the region to be moved by musicians that they wouldn’t have access to otherwise.”

Haskins’s new venue revives his mission to bring world class music to the shores of Lake Champlain. The Great Room will host ticketed events offering intimate seating for a wholly unique listening experience.

Concert lineup is as follows, all shows being at 7:30PM:

• 6/28 Endless Field + Sara Caswell
• 7/5  Nate Wood – fOUR
• 7/12 Helen Gillet
• 7/19 Guillermo Klein
• 7/26 Sex Mob
• 8/2 Paris Monster
• 8/10 Zeena Parkins
• 8/16 Camila Meza
• 8/23 Ben Monder & Taylor Haskins
• 8/30 Sarah Neufeld

Opening this summer’s inaugural concert series on June 28th will be ENDLESS FIELD, a guitar and bass duo featuring guitarist Jesse Lewis and bassist Ike Sturm. Their original songs are filled with intricate finger-style lines, improvisation and ambient textures. Virtuoso violinist Sara Caswell joins the performance as a special guest.

On Friday, July 5th, The Mill presents NATE WOOD, a Grammy-nominated musician as a member of the band Kneebody. Wood will mystify audience members with his own material as he performs solo on 3 analog synthesizers, bass, drums and vocals ALL AT THE SAME TIME. 2 arms + 2 legs = fOUR.

The following Friday, July 12th, features New Orleans based cellist HELEN GILLET. Gillet’s solo performance is known for its enigmatic quality as she fabricates each song with innovative use of the cello and true mastery of live looping technology.

On Friday, July 19th, the Argentine pianist and composer GUILLERMO KLEIN, described by The New York Times as having an “affinity for transforming highly methodical designs into music that feels soulful and uncalculating” will bring a five piece ensemble aptly named Quinteto.

On Friday, July 26th, fresh off the touring circuit with the legendary Laurie Anderson, The Mill presents SEXMOB. Helmed by the legendary improviser Steven Bernstein, who performs on slide trumpet, Briggan Krauss and Saxophones, Sexmob is completed by luminaries Tony Scherr (bass) and Kenny Wollesen (drums) in a band that continues to deconstruct familiar pop tunes with subversive impunity.

Prepare to get up out of your seat on Friday, August 2nd, PARIS MONSTER for an evening of dirty, glitchy, lyric-centered, groove based, funk and soul joined with lyrical themes of bygone eras in rural settings. Characters lost, mortality confronted. Love achieved, and denied. Americana.

On Saturday, August 10th, ZEENA PARKINS, a pioneer of contemporary harp practices, this New York based electro-acoustic composer and improviser uses expanded techniques, object preparations, and electronic processing which has re-defined the instruments’ capacities. This evening’s performance of solo harp will include a live performance of Parkins’s score alongside a screening of Ellen Berkenblit’s film Lines Roar (in conjunction with the exhibition in the on site  galleries).

The following Friday August 16th, Chilean born vocalist and inventive Jazz guitarist and singer/songwriter CAMILA MEZA, will dazzle audiences not only with her exquisitely crafted multi-lingual songs, but also with her fluid, modern approach to the guitar.

On Friday August 23rd, BEN MONDER, a visionary guitarist with virtuosic technical facility (and member of The Bad Plus), will join forces with the Mill’s own creative director and inimitable trumpeter TAYLOR HASKINS to create a singular, unique listening experience: their entire concert will be improvised  on the spot.

Closing out the summer program on Friday August 30th, SARAH NEUFELD brings a powerful sonic experience in which her ethereal vocals meld seamlessly with her mesmerizing violin riffs. Neufeld is an internationally renowned Canadian violinist and composer based in New York City best known as a long time member of Arcade Fire.

The 2024 summer series begins June 28th at 7:30 pm and continues weekly through August 30th at The Mill, 6679 Main Street, Westport, NY. Seating is very limited, tickets must be purchased in advance by visiting https://themilladk.com/music.  To keep up to date with the concert series, you can follow the themill_adk on Facebook and Instagram or visit https://themilladk.com.

TICKETS ON SALE Monday, May 20th  @ noon. Prices vary per event $25-$35.