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“Actor Alec Baldwin: in Conversation on Music”
09/21/2026
September 19, 2026, Richardson Auditorium, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
“Actor Alec Baldwin: in Conversation on Music”
Alec Baldwin (actor), Terrance McKnight (moderator and host), Tony Siqi Yun (pianist)
Princeton University Concerts, renowned for showcasing leading-edge musical artists, opened its 2026‑2027 season September 19 with musical ruminations by a high‑profile celebrity.
In “Actor Alec Baldwin: in Conversation on Music,” the popular film and TV personality regaled a packed Richardson Auditorium on the Princeton University campus in an informal monologue moderated by WQXR host Terrance McKnight.
The stand-alone event began with a short film capturing key moments in the actor’s life (you can find it online with a quick YouTube search). In addition to humor, memoir, and musical banter, the film contains Baldwin’s own reflections on a fatal prop gun firing five years ago while he was making a movie. He was cleared entirely of criminal charges, according to the official judicial ruling.
Looking relaxed and easy-going, the actor also spoke warmly of his childhood on the south shore of Long Island and his discovery of classical music through one great work: Mahler’s Symphony No. 9. But Baldwin’s love of and advocacy for classical music as a genre, so evident in his commentaries in New York Philharmonic broadcasts, remained the center of the emotion‑packed program.
The event was the latest in a series of gatherings at the University focused on the healing power of music. Examples of music with meditative charm graced the program, included a live performance by rising star in the piano world, Tony Siqi Yun. The young artist performed the Bach/Busoni Choral Prelude “Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ” and Chopin’s Nocturne in B major, Op. 62 No. 1. Princeton University Concerts has been a leader nationwide in syncing classical music events with meditation and healing, though I thought there was too much emphasis on classical music as a kind of sleeping aid. Don’t we also listen to great music because it’s thrilling? What a relief to hear the conversation turn to the joyful energy of Beethoven’s Ninth, at least for a while. “Brotherhood!” exclaimed McKnight. And: “Music does not discriminate,” both essential talking points.
The program closed with words directed to every attendee: “The arts are in your soul in ways other things can’t be.”
To which I would add, there is a time and place in everyone’s life for great art to germinate and take root. If you are alert and the circumstances are right, a life‑changing connection will be made. Are you ready? Hold onto your hat!
Linda Holt
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