5 Free Things to do at Duke in November 2025
Learn about history, enjoy music and check out the latest breakthroughs this month at Duke
Nov. 8 – The Ciompi Quartet’s Cultural Crossroads
Duke’s Ciompi Quartet and a collection of acclaimed guest musicians will take the Baldwin Auditorium stage for Cultural Crossroads: Dvořák in America. The show explores the music Antonín Dvořák created while living in the United States. Along with short videos, images and discussions of historical context, the music performed will draw from Dvořák’s work and Native American melodies, African American Spirituals and works by American classical composers. The show starts at 2 p.m.
Nov. 11 – Invented at Duke
Join Duke’s brightest minds at the annual celebration of ingenuity that’s become the signature event for Duke’s Office for Translation & Commercialization. Duke inventors will demonstrate their breakthroughs in front of attendees drawn from campus and industry. Duke University President Vincent E. Price, Pratt School of Engineering Professor and Inventor Ken Gall will be among those speaking at the event which will also feature refreshments and resources for inventors. Score your free ticket to the event, which runs from 4:30-7 p.m. here.
November 13, 15 – Celebrate Student Musicians
Duke’s student musicians will be front-and-center at a pair of mid-month concerts on East Campus. Members of the Duke Chamber Music Program will perform from 5:15-6 p.m. on Nov. 13 next to the fountain in the ground-floor lobby of the Biddle Music Building. As the fall edition of the Fountain Music Series, the event is an intimate and fun way to enjoy the talents of Duke’s student musicians. At 7 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 15, the Duke Chinese Music Ensemble will perform its fall concert at the Nelson Music Room in the East Duke Building. Blending ancient melodies and modern arrangements, the performance will feature traditional Chinese instruments such as the erhu, guzheng, pipa and dizi.
Nov. 14 – Rediscovering Lost Archives: The Autobiography of Omar ibn Said
Born in West Africa, Omar ibn Said was a prominent Muslim scholar who was captured in war, enslaved and taken to the Carolinas where he would spend the next several decades of his life working on plantations. Said died in 1864 in Bladen County, North Carolina, but he left behind written accounts of his life and meditations on his faith that scholars continue to study. Mbaye Lo, a Professor of the Practice of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, will lead a discussion of Said’s writings and his legacy from 4:30-6:30 p.m. in the Ahmadieh Family Conference Hall at the John Hope Franklin Center.
Nov. 20 – Jazz Vespers Service of Thanksgiving
Now in its 11th year, the Jazz Vespers’ Service of Thanksgiving has become a tradition at Duke Chapel. The music-filled service offers opportunities to sing, pray, rest and celebrate gratitude. Performers will fill the campus landmark with jazz music, gospel songs and spirituals. The roughly hour-long service begins at 7 p.m.
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