Chamber Music Festival thrives

Correspondent

Inspired by Rockport’s rich artistic heritage and spectacular seaside setting, the Chamber Music Festival was founded in 1981 by two musicians, pianist-composer David Alpher and soprano Lila Deis, and Paul Sylva, a Rockport businessman. The founders’ goal was to create an exciting chamber music series in one of the nation’s oldest and most vital art colonies – home to many well known contemporary artists and a favorite haunt, in the early part of the 20th century, of renowned painters such as Winslow Homer, Harrison Cady and Childe Hassam.

Since its inception, the Festival has presented soloists and chamber ensembles of international reputation, performing a repertoire from the standard to the little known, from the 17th century to recently commissioned works, including several world premieres.

Appropriately, the Rockport Art Association, which was formed in the 1920s to give artists an opportunity to support and exhibit one another’s work, has been the setting and gracious host of the Festival’s concerts since its premiere season in 1982. The Art Association’s Hibbard Gallery, chosen for its relaxed ambiance and connection with Rockport’s long artistic heritage, has proven to be an ideal site for presenting chamber music—acoustically as well as visually.

In October 1995, the Festival welcomed the acclaimed concert pianist and chamber musician David Deveau as its Artistic Director. Building on the Festival’s tradition of quality musicianship and innovative programming, Mr. Deveau has continued to expand the list of outstanding artists that have performed in Rockport.

In the 1997 season, Mr. Deveau inaugurated the Rockport Chamber Music Festival Emerging Artists program, presenting talented young musicians at the very beginning of their professional careers.

The Rockport Chamber Music Festival, Program 2004

All performances held at the Rockport Art Association, 12 Main St. Rockport

Thursday, June 3, 8 p.m.

Opening Night Gala Concert and Champagne Reception

Vega Quartet and Biava Quartet Mendelssohn: String Quartet Op.13 Ravel: String Quartet in F Mendelssohn: Octet for strings

Friday, June 4, 8 p.m.

David Deveau, piano Vega String Quartet and Mary Persin, viola

All-Beethoven program: String Quartet in C minor, Op. 18, No. 4 String Quartet in E-flat, Op.74 (Harp) Piano Concerto No. 4 in G (recently discovered chamber version of 1807)

Saturday, June 5, 8 p.m.

Boston Trio: Heng-Jin Park, piano, Irina Muresanu, violin, Allison Eldridge, cello. Piano trios by Bright Sheng and Ravel, and Brahms: Sextet in B-flat arranged for piano trio

Sunday, June 6, 5 p.m.

Anonymous 4 (final U.S. tour)

Medieval vocal program la bele marie

[This program is sponsored by Ira and Nina Fieldsteel.]

Thursday, June 10, 8 p.m.

Victor Rosenbaum, piano Georg Lehner, baritone.

Songs and piano music of Schubert (including An Silvia, Der Wanderer, Impromptus Op. 142, Nos. 1, 2, 4 and selections from Schwanengesang) and Schumann, including the Arabeske, Op. 18 and Dichterliebe, Op. 48

Friday. June 11, 8 p.m.

Dubravka Tomsic, piano. All-Chopin program. SOLD OUT.

Saturday, June 12, 10 a.m.

One-hour free family concert. Imani Winds play spirituals, African music, and music from Latinamerica for kids of all ages.

Saturday, June 12, 8 p.m.

SONOS Bayla Keyes, violin Marcus Thompson, viola, Michael Reynolds, cello David Deveau, piano with David Leisner, guitar Haydn: String Quartet in D, Op. 2, No.2 Piazzola: Histoire du Tango for violin and guitar; Dvorak: Piano Quartet in E-flat, Op.87.

Sunday, June 13, 5 p.m.

Imani Winds with Judith Gordon, piano.

Works for woodwind quintet by Zemlinsky, Barber, and Piazzola; Fred Ho: Josephine Baker’s Angels from the Rainbow; Poulenc: Sextet for piano and winds. [This program is sponsored by John and Mollie Byrnes.]

Thursday, June 17, 8 p.m.

St. Lawrence String Quartet. Haydn Quartet Op. 64 no. 2, Osvaldo Golijov, Yiddishbukk; Dvorak Quartet in C Major, Op. 61.

Friday, June 18, 8 p.m.

Richard Stoltzman, clarinet St. Lawrence String Quartet and David Deveau, piano. Schumann: Fantasy Pieces for clarinet and piano Op.73; Shostakovich: String Quartet No.3; Mozart: Quintet in A for clarinet and strings.

Saturday, June 19, 10 a.m.

Free Family concert. Monique and the Musical Cake! Monique Mead will create a Rondo Torte, complete with frosting, and violins.

Saturday June 19, 8 p.m.

Andrés Cárdenes, violin; Monique Mead, violin; Yitzhak Schotten, viola; Anne Martindale Williams, cello; Katherine Collier, piano; David Deveau, piano.

All Russian program. Borodin: String Quartet Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet Suite Arensky: Piano Trio in D minor.

Sunday, June 20, 5 p.m. All Mozart!

Irina Muresanu, violin; Yitzhak Schotten, viola; Anne Martindale Williams, cello; Katherine Collier, piano. Duo for violin and viola, Violin and piano sonata in A, K. 526, Piano Quartet in G minor.

Wednesday, June 23, 7:30 p.m.

Chamber Music Unbuttoned

Former Boston Symphony program annotator and renowned music writer Steven Ledbetter will take you on a tour of the complete sonatas by Beethoven for violin and piano. Featuring musical examples comparing different interpretations, Mr. Ledbetter will discuss Beethoven’s remarkable growth as a composer in the brief span from 1800-1812, which saw the birth of all ten sonatas.

Thursday, June 24, 8 p.m.

Andrés Cárdenes, violin David Deveau, piano

The complete Beethoven sonatas for violin and piano, part I; Sonatas Nos. 2, 6, 7, 8, 9 (Kreutzer)

Friday, June 25, 8 p.m.

Catherine Cho, violin; Mia Chung, piano

The complete Beethoven sonatas for violin and piano, part II; Sonatas Nos. 1, 3, 4, 5 (Spring), 10

Saturday, June 26, 8 p.m.

Peter Serkin, piano. Works of Oliver Knussen, Toru Takemitsu, Luciano Berio and Olivier Messiaen. William Byrd, John Bull, John Dowland and J.S. Bach: Italian Concerto

Sunday, June 27, 5 p.m.

The Borromeo String Quartet. Brahms: The complete string quartets.