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Tickets are sold out for the Saturday, June 28, 7:30pm performance of the Port Townsend Chamber Music Festival. There are a handful of seats left for the Friday, June 27, 7:30pm performance, however. If you are interested in seeing the Tokyo String Quartet, purchase your tickets now, before they disappear.
Centrum has unveiled the lineup for its popular “Free Fridays at the Fort” series, showcasing jazz, blues and fiddle tunes performers, among many others, at the lawn in front of the Fort Worden Commons.
Seating is provided, local and sustainable food is available, and all the entertainment is free. All concerts start at noon. The June 27 event is rain or shine; all others are weather-dependent.
• June 27: Participant performances from the Port Townsend Chamber Music Festival (held at Wheeler Theater).
• July 4: No presentation. Join audience members at the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes show at 1:30 pm.
• July 11: Dobro Showcase with George Rezendes and Dave Meis.
• July 18: Port Townsend Writers’ Conference reading with Brandon Schrand.
• July 27: Participant performances from Jazz Port Townsend.
• August 1: Jam Session from the Port Townsend Country Blues Festival.
• August 8: Dance/Movement Demonstration from Madrona MindBody Institute
Showcasing the Tokyo String Quartet and other outstanding artist faculty playing works by Schubert, Brahms, Mozart and Beethoven, the Festival features free public events June 25 – 27 and two weekend concert performances on June 27 and 28, which serve as the public capstone to a week of intensive music instruction for chamber music students. Tickets are $29/23, and free for youth 18 & under free with reservations.
“The Port Townsend Chamber Music Festival combines a week-long workshop for chamber music students, a full week of free evening events open to the public, and weekend performances by our internationally ranked faculty,” says Callus.
Now in her second year as Festival Artistic Director, Helen Callus is an international recording artist and the first elected female president of the American Viola Society. She is a regular performer on radio and television as a recitalist, chamber music collaborator and concerto soloist. Her debut recording, Portrait of the Viola, and her subsequent recordings have been met with wide critical acclaim. Callus currently serves as Associate Professor of Viola at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
In 2008, the Festival will showcase one of the finest chamber music ensembles in the world, the Tokyo String Quartet, which has captivated audiences and critics alike since its founding over thirty years ago. The quartet—Martin Beaver and Kikuei Ikeda (violins), Kazuhide Isomura (viola), and Clive Greensmith (cello)—have collaborated with a remarkable array of artists and composers, built a comprehensive catalogue of critically acclaimed recordings, and established a distinguished teaching record. Performing over a hundred concerts worldwide each season, the Tokyo String Quartet has a devoted international following.
Joining Callus and the Tokyo String Quartet at the 2008 Port Townsend Chamber Music Festival are cellist Desmond Hoebig, pianist Robert Koenig, violinist Andrew Dawes, and the Attacca Quartet, which was formed at the Juilliard School in 2003, and is comprised of four second year-masters degree students—violinists Amy Schroeder and Keiko Tokunaga, violist Gillian Gallagher, and cellist Andrew Yee.
A lineup of free public events precedes the weekend concerts. All take place at the Joseph F. Wheeler Theater.
Monday, June 23, 7 pm: Public Masterclasses. Helen Callus and Andrew Dawes will coach outstanding workshop participants on important repertoire. Audience members will get a first-hand look at how a master teachers help a student take a piece to the next level.
Tuesday, June 24, 7 pm: Public Masterclasses. Desmond Hoebig and Robert Koenig will coach outstanding workshop participants on important repertoire. Audience members will get a first-hand look at how master teachers help a student take a piece to the next level.
Wednesday, June 25, 7 pm: String Quartet Masterclass. Members of the Tokyo String Quartet—Martin Beaver, Kikuei Ikeda, Kazuhide Isomura, and Clive Greensmith—coach the Attacca Quartet, this year's Young Artist Quartet-in-Residence.
06/21/09-06/28/09: The Port Townsend Chamber Music Festival
