Watch & Listen
During these challenging times, we enjoy bringing you innovative virtual performances such as these.
Please consider making a donation of any size to support this important work by
the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival artists.
2021 Virtual Festival
On the heels of a sold-out in-person Festival in June, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival premiered its second-ever virtual festival in July. The Virtual Festival offers a new perspective on the live June Festival, with recordings of the five concerts, as well as exclusive interviews with the artists and three additional concerts by Festival musicians. Access to all eight concerts in the Virtual Festival is now complimentary.
Virtual Vignette with Nick Photinos and Yasuko Oura
Virtual Vignette with Nick Photinos and Yasuko Oura
Wednesday, March 24 | 5:30 p.m. EST
Artists | Nick Photinos, cello; Yasuko Oura, piano
This concert is generously sponsored by Gwen & S. Evan Weiner
As host for the Virtual Vignettes, Paul Watkins is sponsored by Rayna & Natalio Kogan
Program:
Caroline Shaw
(b. 1982)
In Manus Tuas
John Adams
(b. 1947)
Road Movies
II. Meditative
Angélica Negrón
(b. 1981)
Panorama
Maria Grenfell
(b. 1969)
Time Transfixed
Virtual Vignette with Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung
Virtual Vignette with Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung
Wednesday, February 17 | 5:30 p.m. EST
Artists | Alessio Bax, piano; Lucille Chung, piano
This concert is generously sponsored by Gwen & S. Evan Weiner
As host for the Virtual Vignettes, Paul Watkins is sponsored by Rayna & Natalio Kogan
Program:
W.A Mozart
(1756-91)
Sonata for Piano Four-Hands in C major, K. 521
Felix Mendelssohn
(1809-47)
The Hebrides Overture (Fingal’s Cave)
Composer’s arrangement for piano four-hands
Johannes Brahms
(1833-97)
Hungarian Dances No. 6, 4 and 5
Virtual Vignette with Gilles Vonsattel and Sarah Crocker Vonsattel
Virtual Vignette with Gilles Vonsattel and Sarah Crocker Vonsattel
Wednesday, January 13 | 5:30 p.m. EDT
Artists | Gilles Vonsattel, piano with Sarah Crocker, violin
This concert is generously sponsored by Franziska Schoenfeld
We gratefully acknowledge our Virtual Vignette Series sponsors: Linda & Maurice Binkow and Corliss & Jerry Rosenberg
As host for the Virtual Vignettes, Paul Watkins is sponsored by Rayna & Natalio Kogan
Program:
Louise Farrenc
(1804-75)
Air russe varié for solo piano
Franz Liszt
(1811-86)
Transcendental Etude No. 10 for solo piano
Richard Strauss
(1864-1949)
Violin Sonata in E-fl at major II. Improvisation: Andante cantabile
Virtual Vignette with Nicholas Phan
Virtual Vignette with Nicholas Phan Wednesday, November 11 | 5:30 p.m. EDT
Artists | Nicholas Phan, tenor with Robert Mollicone, piano
This concert is generously sponsored by Linda & Maurice Binkow
We gratefully acknowledge our Virtual Vignette Series sponsors: Linda & Maurice Binkow and Corliss & Jerry Rosenberg
As host for the Virtual Vignettes, Paul Watkins is sponsored by Rayna & Natalio Kogan
Program:
Henry Purcell
(1659-95)
If Music be the Food of Love
Benjamin Britten
(1913-76)
Winter Words
Traditional Folk Songs
arr. B. Britten
Come you not from Newcastle?
Sally in our Alley
Henry Purcell
arr. B. Britten
Evening Hymn
Virtual Vignette with Tien-Hsin Cindy Wu
In October, violinist Cindy Wu joined the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival for its fifth Virtual Vignette, performing pieces by Bach, Smetana and Mozart with pianist Reiko Uchida.
Artists | Tien-Hsin Cindy Wu, violin and Reiko Uchida, piano
Sponsored by: Beverly Baker in honor of Dr. Edward Treisman’s 90th Birthday
Virtual Vignette series sponsors: Linda & Maurice Binkow; Corliss & Jerry Rosenberg
As host for the Virtual Vignettes, Paul Watkins is sponsored by Rayna & Natalio Kogan
Program:
Mozart
(1756 – 91)
Sonata for piano and violin in F Major, K 376
Smetana
(1824 – 84)
Z Domiviny (From My Homeland) for violin and piano, No. 2
Bach
(1685 – 1750)
Chaconne from Partita in D minor, BWV 1004
Virtual Vignette with Ran Dank and Soyeon Kate Lee
In August, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival hosted its third Virtual Vignette performance, featuring piano duo Ran Dank and Soyeon Kate Lee as they performed pieces from Bach to Barber and joined us for insightful discussion.
Artists| Ran Dank, piano ; Soyeon Kate Lee, piano
Sponsored by: James Tocco
Virtual Vignette series sponsors: Linda & Maurice Binkow; Corliss & Jerry Rosenberg
As host for the Virtual Vignettes, Paul Watkins is sponsored by Rayna & Natalio Kogan
Program:
J.S. Bach / Ferruccio Busoni
(1685-1750) / (1866-1924)
Chaconne in D minor
Franz Liszt / Ferruccio Busoni
(1811-86) / (1866-1924)
Fantasia on two themes from Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro”
Samuel Barber
(1910-81)
Souvenirs for four-hands, Op. 28
V. Hesitation Tango
IV. Two-Step
III. Pas de deux
VI. Galop
Tessa Lark and Michael Thurber’s Virtual Vignette for GLCMF
Earlier this month, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival brought together a few friends for an evening of performance and great conversation with violinist Tessa Lark and bassist Michael Thurber. Individually, they are both masters in their craft, but it is when they come together that they create a sound incredibly distinct to them. Watch their highly improvised performance, blending classical and bluegrass music, and stick to the end to hear them share details about projects they are working on, what makes them such a harmonious duo and how they have adjusted to working from home.
Program:
J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
Sonata No. 1 in G minor for Solo Violin
I. Adagio
Eugène Ysaÿe (1858-1931)
Sonata No. 4 in E minor
II. Sarabande
Michael Thurber/Eddie Barbash/Lark
Wooden Soldier
J.S. Bach
Invention No. 1 in C major (arr. for violin and bass)
Lark/Thurber (b. 1989, b. 1987)
Tumble Time
Cedar and Sage
Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival’s first Virtual Vignette featuring Artistic Director Paul Watkins
The Festival gathered 50 of its friends for a night of music and discussion surrounding Paul Watkins. Alongside his wife, Jennifer, he discussed the theme for our 2021 festival “Visions and Revisions,” his process as an artist, as well as his choice in music and a behind-the-scenes look at creating this performance.
Program:
J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
Cello Suite No. 4 in E-flat Major, BWV 1010
Prelude
Courante
Sarabande
Benjamin Britten (1913-76)
Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, Op. 72
I. Canto Primo
II. Fuga
Thomas Tomkins (1572-1656)
A Sad Pavan for These Distracted Times (1649)
Huw Watkins (b. 1976)
Sarabande for solo piano (2014)
Eliza Watkins and Paul Watkins perform an excerpt from Haydn’s Violin Concerto
No. 2
Twelve-year-old violinist Eliza Watkins performs an excerpt from the first movement of Haydn’s Violin Concerto No. 2. She is joined by her father, Festival Artistic Director Paul Watkins on piano. Having studied violin for five or six years, it is clear that great talent runs in the family.
~Nois performs “Night Music” by Emma O’Halloran at the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival
Last year, ~Nois performed “Night Music” by Irish composer Emma O’Halloran at the Detroit Institute of Arts with the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival. The saxophone quartet filled Rivera Court with many different sounds and styles, exemplifying the dynamic nature of the instruments and contemporary music.
Founded in 2016, ~Nois has received glowing praise for its “truly innovative musicianship” and “raw creativity” (Cacophony Magazine). ~Nois was the recipient of the Silver Medal at the 2017 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and has premiered over 30 pieces.
Nick Photinos performs a duet with his daughter, Emi.
The Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival is thrilled to have cellist Nick Photinos share with us this exclusive piece his daughter, Emi, has been working on with him. Nick is a founding member and co-Artistic Director of the four-time Grammy Award-winning chamber music ensemble Eighth Blackbird. We look forward Nick’s next appearance at our Festival!
Tessa Lark performs Telemann’s Fantasia No. 7 in E-flat major
Violinist Tessa Lark is scheduled to make a return to the 2020 Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival! Recipient of a 2018 Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship and a 2016 Avery Fisher Career Grant, and winner of the 2012 Naumburg International Violin Competition, Ms. Lark made her concert debut at 16 with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. A budding superstar in the classical realm, she is also a highly acclaimed fiddler in the tradition of her native Kentucky. Here’s a fun personal message from Ms. Lark and a sneak peak of what will be an incredible performance of Telemann’s Fantasia No. 7 in E-flat major.
Alessio Bax performs the Bach/Marcello Concerto in D Minor BWV 974
Alessio Bax is returning to Michigan for the 2020 Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival. He shares a warm message to the Festival family, along with a performance of the Bach/Marcello Concerto in D Minor BWV 974, 2nd movement.
Ran Dank and Soyeon Kate Lee perform for GLCMF
Husband and wife duo Ran Dank and Soyeon Kate Lee are set to perform at our upcoming Festival this summer! Together, they’ve presented the world premieres of Frederic Rzewski’s “Four Hands,” and Alexander Goehr’s “Seven Impromptus,” as well as established their concert series “Music by the Glass” held in a New York SoHo art gallery.
Nathan Monday performs the harpsichord
Nathan Mondry shares his impeccable improvisation skills on the harpsichord from quarantine, and looks forward to returning home to Michigan for the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival.
At a young age, Nathan quickly developed into a seasoned performer, becoming highly sought after for his improvisational skills. He is the recipient of the 2015 Mary McLaughlin Prize in Early Music at McGill University, as well as collecting numerous prizes from international music festivals, including a special prize from the first Partimento/Basso Competition in Katowice.
Peter Sparling for GLCMF
Peter Sparling is scheduled to premiere Winterreise at this year’s Festival. Winterreise (Winter Journey) is a song cycle for voice and piano by Franz Schubert, a setting of 24 poems by Wilhelm Müller. Sparling’s Winterreise features his own dancing, video editing and paintings to create a dramatic and visceral video narrative for screening alongside live musical performance by Nicholas Phan, tenor, and Paul Watkins, piano.
Phil Setzer discusses 2020 Shouse Institute
We interrupted Phil Setzer’s rehearsal to get you the latest information on our 2020 Shouse ensembles. Phil is one the founding members of the Emerson String Quartet and a long-time supporter of our Festival.