NYS Music 202​2

Category: Classical

  • Flamenco Rhythms Performance to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at UAlbany PAC

    In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, which starts on Thursday, September 15th, the UAlbany Performing Arts Center presents Flamenco Rhythms. The show will be held on Wednesday, September 28th, at 7:30pm on the UAlbany campus located at 1400 Washington Avenue. The program features virtuoso guitarist Maria Zemantauski, percussionist Brian Melick, and dancer La Nina. 

    musician with guitar, dancer with shawl, musician with drum

    Guitarist and composer Maria Zemantauski is one of the world’s few heralded female flamenco-style guitarists and one of even fewer female flamenco composers. She is a nylon-string guitarist and composer whose style is influenced by a variety of musical genres, most notably, Spanish classical and flamenco.

    Flamenco Rhythms Performance at UAlbany Performing Arts Center for Hispanic Heritage Month 9/15

    She has performed Flamenco Rhythms in Spain, Italy and across the continental United States to great acclaim. By embracing the classical and traditional flamenco repertoire for her foundation, she takes her audience on a musical journey inspired by her flair for experimentation and pure love of the instrument. Zemantauski’s relationship with the UAlbany Performing Arts Center goes back to 2012 when she was involved in the first residency by NYC-based Flamenco Vivo at the venue. 

    Flamenco Rhythms Performance at UAlbany Performing Arts Center for Hispanic Heritage Month 9/15

    Musician, educator, author and designer Brian Melick has been professionally involved in music since the early age of 13. He is a featured recording artist on over 400 commercially released recordings on independent as well as major labels in addition to his seven solo projects. Melick is a highly active drummer performing locally as well as around the United States and Canada.

    Lastly, La Nina is a native of Colombia who studied flamenco in Spain at the Academia de Flamenco de Mariquilla and in New York City with master teachers Jose Molina, Jorge Navarro and Mariano Parra.

    Admission to the Flamenco Rhythms performance is free. No reservations or tickets are required.  For further information, contact the UAlbany Performing Arts Center’s main office at (518) 442-3995 or click the link here. 

  • Cuartetango Music & Dance Brings Chamber Music to Roosevelt Island

    Leonardo Suarez Paz presents PIAZZOLLA 100: Cuartetango Music & Dance on Sept. 18, at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms State Park on Roosevelt Island.

    Cuartetango Music & Dance
    Cuartetango Music & Dance

    This theatrical chamber concert will feature a string quartet Cuartetango, comprised of two violins, a viola, a cello, and dancers and the bandoneon. A Q&A with the artists will follow the performance. The event is free for all those who attend, but register for it here.

    Led by Artistic Director Leonardo Suarez Paz, Cuartetango is one of the only quartets of its kind to perform Nuevo Tango, a musical style that infuses elements of Jazz and Classical music with traditional Tango music.

    Cuartetango will offer attendees the unique experience to hear Nuevo Tango, a style that may sound familiar to many but in a new way. Nuevo Tango was created in New York City and I am very excited to present this music at the Four Freedoms State Park underneath the beautiful backdrop of the city Nuevo Tango calls home.

    Leonardo Suarez Paz

    Leonardo Suarez Paz has been hailed as the “torchbearer of Argentine Tango and the legacy of its greatest composer, Astor Piazzolla” (All About Jazz, UK). He creates across cultures and genres, continuing a family legacy of over 100 years. At age 16 he became the youngest member of the Orquesta Estable del Teatro Colon, and his work as a soloist includes the most distinguished tango orchestras.

    Cuartetango Music & Dance

    The production features songs from Cuartetango’s two-time Latin Grammy nominated album Masters of
    Bandoneon    . Performers include director, violinist, vocalist and dancer Leonardo Suarez Paz; violinist Omar Falcon; violaist Ron Lawrence; cellist Danny Miller; bandoneonist Rodolfo Zanetti; and dancers Olga Suarez Paz, Carolina aurena and Juan de Argentina.

    The Cuartetango Music & Dance event is on Sept. 18 at 4:00 P.M. within “The Room” at 1 FDR Four Freedoms State Park, Roosevelt Island, and is free for everyone attending.

  • SPAC Announces New Year-Long Residency With Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

    Fans of classical music and the Chamber Music Society will now get the chance to hear them in Saratoga throughout the entire year instead of just the customary summer performances. Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) has announced a new year-round residency for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center that is slated to begin later this year. 2023 marks the 10 year anniversary for this yearly residency, which is now extended throughout the entire year, affirming SPAC’s commitment to providing programming outside of the traditional summer season.

    Chamber Music Society Lincoln Center

    Performances from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will return to the Spa Little Theatre for the first time since 2019. The next scheduled dates are on October 15, March 18 and May 13 with the summer performances to be announced at a later date. All scheduled musicians and accompanying selections can be found below.

    While CMS may have just taken their final bow for the summer, we can’t think of a better way to celebrate the residency’s upcoming SPAC 10th anniversary in 2023 than by extending the scope of what they do in Saratoga.

    ~ Elizabeth Sobol, President and CEO of Saratoga Performing Arts Center

    Subscriptions to all three programs will be available to purchase at spac.org beginning August 26 at 10 a.m. for SPAC members. Member presales are tiered by level, and members will receive their presale start time via email. Subscriptions will be available to the general public beginning August 31 at 10 a.m. Single tickets will be available to purchase on September 8 at 10 a.m.

    Monday, October 15, 2022

    MICHAEL STEPHEN BROWN, Piano

    KRISTIN LEE, Violin

    RICHARD LIN, Violin

    JAMES THOMPSON, Violin

    MATTHEW LIPMAN, Viola

    MIHAI MARICA, Cello

    JOSEPH CONYERS, Double Bass

    Bach Concerto in D minor for Keyboard, Strings, and Continuo, BWV 1052 (1734)

    Schubert Rondo in A major for Violin and String Quartet, D. 438 (1816)

    Handel/Halvorsen Passacaglia in G minor for Violin and Viola (1894)

    Mendelssohn Double Concerto in D minor for Violin, Piano, and Strings (1823)

    Saturday, March 18, 2023

    JESSICA RIVERA, Soprano

    MICHAEL STEPHEN BROWN, Piano

    GILLES VONSATTEL, Piano

    NICHOLAS CANELLAKIS, Cello

    IAN DAVID ROSENBAUM, Percussion

    Copland El Salón México for Piano and Percussion (arr. Bernstein) (1932-36, arr. 1941)

    Bernstein Three Meditations from Mass for Cello, Piano, and Percussion (1971, arr. 1977)

    Ginastera “Chacarera” from Cinco canciones populares argentinas for Voice and Piano, Op. 10 (1943)

    Chávez “North Carolina Blues” for Voice and Piano (1942)

    Ginastera “Gato” from Cinco canciones populares argentinas for Voice and Piano, Op. 10 (1943)

    Ponce “Estrellita” for Voice and Piano (1912)

    Bernstein “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story for Voice and Piano (1957)

    Bernstein  “Somewhere” from West Side Story for Voice and Piano (1957)

    Golijov Mariel for Cello and Marimba (1999)

    Villa-Lobos “A maré encheu” from Guia prático for Piano (1932)

    Villa-Lobos “O polichinelo” from Prole do bebê for Piano (1918)

    Ginastera Pampeana No. 2, Rhapsody for Cello and Piano, Op. 21 (1950)

    León “Oh Yemanja” from Scourge of Hyacinths for Soprano, Cello, and Piano (1994)

    Gershwin Cuban Overture for Piano, Four Hands, and Percussion (1932)

    Saturday, May 13, 2023

    WU HAN, Piano

    ARNAUD SUSSMANN, Violin

    DAVID FINCKEL, Cello

    Beethoven Sonata in F major for Violin and Piano, Op. 24, “Spring” (1800-01)

    Beethoven Trio in G major for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 1, No. 2 (1791-93, rev. 1794)

    Dvořák Trio in E minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 90, “Dumky” (1890-91)

  • On this day in 1966, the Philadelphia Orchestra Begin Annual SPAC Residency

    On August 4, 1966, the world-renowned Philadelphia Orchestra took up residence at Saratoga Springs Performing Arts Center (SPAC) for the very first time with Maestro Eugene Ormandy conducting. The maestro helped shape SPAC into the perfect venue for such a performance and brought the orchestra much acclaim throughout his 44 years as conductor.

    56 years later, the orchestra still continues to offer audiences classical entertainment with its programming and performances.

    Philadelphia Orchestra
    Adrian Siegel, courtesy of Adrian Siegel Collection/Philadelphia Orchestra Archives

    On the first Saturday of August, on a clear night, an estimated 5,100 attendees gathered inside the newly opened SPAC for the first show with another estimated 2,000 on the center’s lawns. The performance marked a first for the venue. The New York City Ballet’s July performances that year went beautifully, but how would the SPAC amphitheater sound hold with an entire symphony inside?

    According to the New York Times, which reported on the show at the time, the performance and acoustics held well and the enthusiastic crowd agreed. Maestro Eugene Ormandy chose an all-Beethoven program: the Ninth and Eighth Symphony and the “Consecration of the House” Overture in C Major. The Overture, featuring a march and much fanfare, made the perfect celebratory music for an opening night. Despite the distant sound interference of a freight train interrupting during the Eighth Symphony, the rest of the concert seemed to be a great success.

    The concert in no way would have been such a success without the preparation and intensity of its maestro. Eugene Ormandy and his Orchestra were careful, precise, and presented a wonderful concert to their audience. From the start, Ormandy predicted the venue would be “one of the great summer festivals of all time.” However, according to Times Union, before opening night, Ormandy made it clear that some things about the SPAC venue had to be changed.

    The waterfall behind the venue interrupted the music, and a dam was promptly built to rectify the situation. This solution did not last long, and groundsmen had to catch every last frog that resided in the resulting pond so Ormandy, and his audiences, did not hear any incessant croaking during the performance.

    Philadelphia Orchestra
    Adrian Siegel, courtesy of Adrian Siegel Collection/Philadelphia Orchestra Archives

    According to SPAC, the amphitheater was specifically built with the Philadelphia Orchestra in mind. In addition to his work as maestro, Eugene Ormandy played a huge role in ensuring that the venue would be the perfect summer home for such a major orchestra, known as one of the “Big Five.”

    Although founded in 1900, the Philadelphia Orchestra would grow immensely in reach under Ormandy. One of the first orchestras to record music, many of the most popular recordings of the organization were under the conduction of Ormandy. 7 years after the first show at SPAC, the orchestra would travel to the People’s Republic of China, one of the first tours to the region from a Western orchestra in decades. 

    Ormandy expanded the reach of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the prominence of Saratoga Performing Arts Center during his long career. The Philadelphia Orchestra has returned to the venue consistently since that first summer evening show in August of 1966. 56 years later, the people of Saratoga Springs and visitors can enjoy the talents of the Philadelphia Orchestra, which will hold multiple performances at SPAC this August.

    The orchestra will play a mix of traditional classical music and more contemporary takes. Beginning on August 10, the current Music Director of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, will return for four programs. Highlights include the return of world-famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma and violinist Joshua Bell, among the performances. For tickets to upcoming concerts, visit the SPAC website for more information.

  • The Glimmerglass Festival Announces Artistic & General Director’s Final Season

    The Glimmerglass Festival in Cooperstown will return indoors to its theater after presenting this past summer’s performances outdoors in “Glimmerglass on the Grass.” The 2022 season will run from July 8 to August 21 in the Alice Busch Opera Theater.

    glimmerglass festival

    Artistic & General Director Francesca Zambello has announced the 2022 Festival will be her 12th and final season with the company.

    My years with The Glimmerglass Festival have been the best of my life. I got married and built a home here with Faith and our son, Jackson, and the Cooperstown community has become an integral part of our lives. I am so proud of this company and all we have accomplished over the last decade. This is not goodbye; it is a time of transition and excitement for this company I adore. I am excited to witness and support the beginning for the next era of the ever-evolving Glimmerglass Festival/

    Francesca Zambello

    She has done a lot during her time at the company. She initiated the annual appointment of Artists in Residence, including internationally-renowned stars Bill Burden, Christine Goerke, and more. During her tenure, the Festival added original youth operas to the summer season, established an Attica Correctional Facility initiative, and introduced second-stage events with adaptations of classics, cabarets, gospel and klezmer concerts, and more.

    Francesca Zambello.

    Zambello will remain in her position through the conclusion of the 2022 Festival and will continue her role as Artistic Director at Washington National Opera and as an independent opera and theater director.

    The 2022 Festival will feature productions of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music, as well as Bizet’s Carmen,  directed by 2022 Artist in Residence Denyce Graves. In August, she will also reprise her role in an extended version of The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson in a two-night-only presentation.

    Following the festival will be the releases of the Festival’s first two commissioned works on film: The Knock, by Aleksandra Vrebalov and Deborah Brevoort, which is about military wives; and On Trac I<, a dance piece, composed by Nicolas Lell Benavides and choreographed and performed by Amanda Castro, which looks at the intersection of human and machine in rural America.

    The 2022 festival is happening right now, and tickets are on sale here.

  • Chiara Ajkun Choreographed “Don Quixote” Announces Performance At The Egg

    The Ajkun Ballet Theatre performs Don Quixote – a Spanish celebration of love and laughter in a breathtaking ballet on Friday, August 12 at 7:30pm at The Egg in Albany.

    Don Quixote

    The Ajkun Ballet Theatre (AjkunBT) is a New York City based professional company presenting classical and contemporary ballets in the Greater New York area, throughout the USA and internationally. Every summer, dancers from 135 countries have travelled to Albany for this experience and many have become employed in over 150 dance companies, worldwide. 

    The ballet Don Quixote is based on Miguel de Cervantes’s novel “Don Quixote de la Mancha” (1605 and 1615) with music by Leon Minkus and was originally choreographed in 1869. It won global popularity with the verson of Mikhail Baryshnikov in 1980.

    Company Artists Kylie Brown (Mercedes), Telmen Munkherdene (Espada), Areum Jeong (Dulcinea), Ariel Corrêa (Gamache), Ergys Jake (Don Quixote), the Ajkun Ballet Theatre’s corps de ballet and talented emerging artists from all over the world perform in the show.

    This version of Don Quixote, which was choregraphed by Chiara Ajkun, focused on dancing and infused with the vibrancy of Spain. The music filled with sounds of guitars and tambourines, the dancing of flirtatious gypsies and toreadors. The redesign of Don Quixote represented Chiara Ajkun’s belief that to offer access to the theater for all with in mind that today’s audience is worldly, educated, and well-travelled.

    The performers are also outstanding in the play. Momoko Burbine (Kitri) has been with the Ajkun Ballet company since 2012, when she joined the corps de ballet from her native Osaka, Japan. Momoko quicky rose for the astonishing petite allegro and romantic finesses. Basilio is also performed by an electrifying dancer, Kelvis Tafaj, who presents elegant charisma from his energy, physicality, gravity-defying leaps. Tafaj joined the Ajkun Ballet in 2014 from Tropojë, Albania, and performed Ajkun’s works throughout Italy, the UK, Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia.

  • Kronos Quartet Soundtrack Live Documentary at Celebrate Brooklyn!

    The Kronos Quartet have a long history of creating unique and visceral music for a variety of different platforms. Last week, the San Francisco based string quartet came to the Lena Horne Bandshell and performed their live documentary, A Thousand Thoughts for the Celebrate Brooklyn! summer series. Directed by Sam Green, the documentary chronicles the string quartet’s history, various member lineups, and takes a deeper look into the musical theories behind some of the group’s more iconic work.

    kronos quartet
    The Kronos Quartet at Celebrate Brooklyn! 7/14/22. Photo by Joseph Buscarello

    The show began with Sam Green introducing the concept of the “live documentary” and how he went about convincing the group to take part. As the band took the stage, they also appeared one-by-one on the screen behind them as part of their interviews for the film. They each joked and seemed confused about the concept of performing music for a documentary live. As the show went on, the uniqueness of the presentation became more apparent. Seeing Dave Harrington and others talk about the music on screen while they were performing on stage in front of you truly gave you new perspective to the music.

    kronos quartet
    The Kronos Quartet at Celebrate Brooklyn! 7/14/22. Photo by Joseph Buscarello

    Green talked about the persistence of natural music in our every day lives and even had the audience take a full minute to sit in silence and tune into our surroundings at the start of the show. Described as a “meditation on music itself-the act of listening closely to music, the experience of feeling music deeply” the film tends to focus on how the members of the group discovered various musical styles that caught their attention. Hank Dutt told a story about how he discovered throat singing from a CD he packed for a long international flight, becoming fixated on one song for the entire trip, and the urge to find that artist in order to learn more and collaborate.

    kronos quartet
    The Kronos Quartet at Celebrate Brooklyn! 7/14/22. Photo by Joseph Buscarello

    The documentary began with a history of recorded music, including the first known audio recording called “The Lost Chord.” The presentation shifted between bits of interviews with the quartet members, anecdotes about the creation of some of their projects, and their perception as a “modern string quartet” that were breaking the rules and revolutionizing what a string quartet could be.

    kronos quartet
    The Kronos Quartet at Celebrate Brooklyn! 7/14/22. Photo by Joseph Buscarello

    A Thousand Thoughts is only performed as a live documentary, and the screening for Celebrate Brooklyn! was the last scheduled performance this year. Alongside the interviews of the members quartet, the film also well known collaborators of the group such as Philip Glass, Laurie Anderson, Steve Reich, and more. The group has been performing since the premiere of the film in 2018, so keep an eye on their website for future screenings next year.

  • The Albany Symphony’s TrailBlaze NY Continues into July

    During the first weekend in July, The Albany Symphony will continue a series of free outdoor concerts in celebration of the newly completed Empire State Trail. The series, TrailBlaze NY, debuted in Troy and Cohoes and will include stops in Schenectady, Albany, and Amsterdam.

    Photo Courtesy of ASO

    The Albany Symphony debuted the festival in order to recognize the completion of the expansive Empire State Trail. The trail offers the people of NY 750 miles of cycling, hiking, and walking paths along the state’s most significant waterways. 

    At each stop along the weekend, the Albany Symphony, led by Maestro David Alan Miller, will perform at 7:30 pm featuring a program of new music, a folk-song sing-a-long, and more.  Flame The Band will open for the Symphony at the Schenectady stop, with Barbara Howard and Jordan Taylor Hill opening in the Albany and Amsterdam events respectively.

    Photo Courtesy of ASO

    Audiences can also enjoy local food and drinks, health and wellness events, activities for kids, music, and more alongside the beautiful scenery. Each stop along the weekend is tailored to showcase the unique offerings of each of these communities.

    TrailBlaze NY is a unique opportunity for people from all over the Northeastern US and Canada to discover some of the most extraordinary towns in New York State and the glorious nature that surrounds them … I hope all our friends and supporters will also join us to celebrate New York State in all its wonder and natural beauty, as well as our resilient communities and the things that connect us and bring us together, all the trails we explore, real and imagined.

    Maestro David Alan Miller

    The previous weekends of the festival in Troy and Cohoes were a big hit and audiences saw performances from the Symphony as well as Dogs of Desire among other musical guests. Dogs of Desire premiered five new pieces inspired by the Empire State Trail, and both groups were led by Miller.

    For the schedule of activities for the weekend, see below. For more information on the Albany Symphony click here.

    July 1 – Mohawk Harbor – Schenectady

    All Day – Lots of Activities 

    5:00pm – Music/Food/Fun

    6:00pm – Opening Act – Flame The Band

    7:30pm – Albany Symphony Performs

    9:30pm – Fireworks 

    July 2 – Jennings Landing – Albany 

    All Day – Lots of Activities 

    5:00pm – Music/Food/Fun

    6:00pm – Opening Act – Barbara Howard

    7:30pm – Albany Symphony Performs

    9:30pm – Fireworks

    July 3 – Riverlink Park – Amsterdam 

    All Day – Lots of Activities 

    5:00pm – Music/Food/Fun

    6:45pm – Opening Act – Jordan Taylor Hill

    7:30pm – Albany Symphony Performs

    9:30pm – Fireworks

  • The American Classical Orchestra Announces 2022-2023 Season

    The American Classical Orchestra announced their upcoming 2022-2023 season made up of four orchestral performances conducted by Founder and Artistic Director Thomas Crawford. The season will begin on September 22, 2022 and continue until May 18, 2023.

    American Classical Orchestra Season

    The three of the four performances will be at Alice Tully Hall, and one will be held at the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer. The opening concert at Alice Tully Hall will feature Beethoven’s third piano concerto with Hungarian virtuoso Petra Somlai on the fortepiano.

    Other guest artists for this season also include Soprano Yulan Piao, Mezzo-Soprano Heather Petrie, Tenor Lawrence Jones, Bass Joseph Charles Beutel, and Violinist Rachell Ellen Wong. The orchestra draws talent from all over, and the players are the foremost in their fields.

    https://youtu.be/Ua_GHVEDCdI

    The American Classical Orchestra is New York City’s leading period-instrument orchestra and established a permanent home there in 2005. The organization is dedicated to performing the music of 17th, 18th, and 19th-century performers – using historic performance techniques and original instruments to replicate the sound as it would have been heard at the time.

    The American Classical Orchestra’s musicians are masters of the period-instrument, performing classics anew— with zeal and authenticity. This season will offer a wonderful opportunity for our audiences to experience Baroque and Classical masterworks on the very instruments heard in concert halls when they were first performed and will also reveal how the sound and nuances of these original instruments can bring the music of great Romantic composers to life in different ways.

    – ACO Artistic Director & Founder Thomas Crawford

    Some of this year’s season highlights include Mozart’s Requiem coupled with the world premiere of Thomas Crawford’s Elegy, which was composed in memory of ACO violinist Judson Griffin on October 28. On March 2, there will be an all-Bach program of cantatas offering audience favorites and on May 18, a romantic evening of music featuring works by Schumann, Sarasate, and Grieg.

    Tickets for individual performances are priced at $75, $55, and $35 and are available at aconyc.org. 

    Read the full 2022-2023 American Classical Orchestra season below:

    Opening Concert: Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 – Thursday, September 22, at 8 pm, Alice Tully Hall

    Petra Somlai, fortepiano

    Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor   

    Schubert: Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major          

    C.P.E Bach: Symphony in F Major, H665

    Remember – Friday, October 28, 2022, at 8 pm, Alice Tully Hall

    Yulan Piao, soprano

    Heather Petrie, mezzo-soprano

    Lawrence Jones, tenor

    Joseph Charles Beutel, bass

    ACO Chorus

    Mozart: Requiem in D Minor, K. 626

    Thomas Crawford: Elegy (World Premiere in honor of ACO violinist Judson Griffin)

    Healing Bach – Thursday, March 2, 2023, at 8 pm, Church of St. Vincent Ferrer, Lexington Avenue at 66thStreet

    J.S. Bach:

      An Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats, BWV 42

      Gleichwie der Regen und Schnee vom Himmel fällt, BWV 18

      Schwingt freudig euch empor, BWV 36 

     *Soloists to be announced at a later date

    Romantic Fantasy – Thursday, May 18, 2023, at 8 pm, Alice Tully Hall

    Rachell Ellen Wong, violin

    Schumann: Symphony No. 1 in B-flat Major, Op. 38 “Spring Symphony”     

    Sarasate: Carmen Fantasy, Op. 25Grieg: The Mountain Thrall, Op. 32

  • Chelsea Music Festival Announces Lineup with Theme “Not Without You”

    The Chelsea Music Festival 2022 in NYC has announced its 13 season and the theme is “Not Without You,” which explores the deep bond between Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn on the 175th anniversary of their
    passing. It will run from June 23-26. then finally on the 28.

    chelsea music festival 2022 flyer

    The Chelsea Music Festival celebrates the creativity of one of New York City’s most dynamic neighborhoods and brings together world-renowned performers to celebrate great music. Since 2010, festival has established itself as a critically-acclaimed, accessible and interactive gateway to chamber music in non-traditional concert spaces like art galleries, churches, and more.

    The 2022 festival theme reflects on the need to be with and encourage one another, especially due to the forced distance after the pandemic.

    Chelsea Music Festival 2022 Lineup

    June 23- Exhibition Reception- How To Operate in a Blue Room

    Resident artist Jonathan VanDyke created the exhibition How to Operate in a Blue Room, which features the artist’s sewn paintings, a selection of the amaryllis flowers that the artist raises in his studio, sculptures, and scraps from his studio projects.

    June 24- Festival Opening Night: Not Without You

    The festival’s opening night concert includes music by J.S. Bach, V. Silvestrov, and a New York Premiere of a new work by Misato Mochizuki, as well as music by the people being celebrated in the theme, Fanny & Felix Mendelssohn.

    chelsea music festival 2022

    June 25- Das Jahr: Twelve Months Personified at 7 P.M.

    The evening features pianists playing “Das Jahr” by Fanny Mendelssohn. It is one of her most sparkling compositions, as it is a twelve-part piano suite based on the months of the year.

    Fanny Mendelssohn

    June 25- Late Night With ARKAI Music at 9 P.M.

    Later in the evening, award-winning string duo ARKAI Music will be performing a mix of original and classic songs, as well as a special premiere of their latest single release, “Patchwork.” They are known for their infusion of classical and rock music.

    ARKAI Music

    June 26- Jazz Matinee With Carmen Staaf at 2 P.M.

    Pianist & composer Carmen Staaf joins the Festival for a matinee jazz performance and will be joined by the Ensemble-in-Residence Ulysses Quartet as they play Staaf’s own compositions and Mary Lou Williams’ Zodiac Suite.

    Carmen Staaf.

    June 26- Ulysses Quartet at 4 P.M.

    The Ensemble-in-Residence Ulysses Quartet have been described by The Guardian as “emotively and dynamically astounding,” as they perform music that ties into the theme “Not Without You,” and to the artwork of Jonathan VanDyke.

    Ulysses Quartet.

    June 28- Festival Finale— Siblings & Soulmates

    For the final day of the festival, the concert will tie together the Mendelssohn siblings lives through song, as well as through poetry and chamber music.

    For more information and to buy tickets to the Chelsea Music Festival, go here.

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