SUMMER 2023
Olympic Chamber Music Fellowship Week I
SATURDAY, AUGUST 12, 2023 | 2:00PM | WHEELER THEATER AT FORT WORDEN
MAGNIFICENT MOZART
A R T I S T S
Alexander Fiterstein clarinet
Jennifer Frautschi violin
Jason Moon violin*
Clara Neubauer violin*
Laura Liu viola*
Vicki Powell viola
Carlo Lay cello*
Matthew Zalkind cello
Robert Carlson piano*
Julio Elizalde piano
*2023 Olympic Chamber Music Fellow
P R O G R A M
MOZART Andante & Variations in G major for Piano, Four Hands, K. 501
MOZART Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, K. 478
WEBER Duo Concertante for Clarinet & Piano, Op. 48
MOZART Clarinet Quintet in A major, K. 581
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
The Olympic Music Festival’s fortieth season kicks off a selection of Mozart’s most beloved compositions including his whimsical Andante & Variations for two pianists at same keyboard and the sublime Clarinet Quintet written at the end of his life. Carl Maria von Weber was a composer of the new generation after Mozart and his Duo Concertante pushes the virtuosic limits of the clarinet and piano.
This concert is generously sponsored by Herb and Kathe Cook
SUNDAY, AUGUST 13, 2023 | 2:00PM | WHEELER THEATER AT FORT WORDEN
FIREWORKS IN PARIS
A R T I S T S
Alexander Fiterstein clarinet
Jennifer Frautschi violin
Jason Moon violin*
Clara Neubauer violin*
Laura Liu viola*
Vicki Powell viola
Carlo Lay cello*
Matthew Zalkind cello
Robert Carlson piano*
Julio Elizalde piano
*2023 Olympic Chamber Music Fellow
P R O G R A M
FAURÉ Clarinet Trio in D minor, Op. 120
DEBUSSY String Quartet in G minor, Op. 10
CHAUSSON Concert for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet, Op. 21
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
Experience three of the jewels of French chamber music in one afternoon! Gabriel Fauré wrote his trio at the end of his life as he was facing an uncertain world where music was progressing faster than he and other guardians of the French national style were comfortable with. Debussy’s only string quartet showcases his explorations of harmonies that led to the rise of the impressionist style in France. Ernest Chausson’s monumental Concert (French for concerto) brings the drama of instrumental soloists with orchestra into the intimate world of chamber music.
This concert is generously sponsored by Herb & Kathe Cook
Olympic Chamber Music Fellowship Week II
SATURDAY, AUGUST 19, 2023 | 2:00PM | WHEELER THEATER AT FORT WORDEN
ROMANTIC FRONTIERS
A R T I S T S
Alexi Kenney violin
Jason Moon violin*
Clara Neubauer violin*
Laura Liu viola*
Vicki Powell viola
Jennifer Culp cello
Carlo Lay cello*
Robert Carlson piano*
Julio Elizalde piano
*2023 Olympic Chamber Music Fellow
P R O G R A M
BRAHMS Trio for Horn (Viola), Violin, and Piano in E-flat major, Op. 40
SCHOENBERG Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 (Transfigured Night for String Sextet)
SCHUMANN Piano Quartet in E-flat major, Op. 47
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
The beginning, rise, and final transformation of the romantic period in classical music can easily be attributed to the three composers featured on this program. Robert Schumann’s glorious Piano Quartet from 1842 features a musical love letter to his wife Clara, which has become one of classical music’s most cherished melodies. Arnold Schoenberg is best known for opening the door to a world of music after harmonic tonality. However, his Verklärte Nacht or Transfigured Night for string sextet is one of the final gasps of romantic music as it began to rupture as the influence of the expressionist movement began to take hold in Austria. Violinist Alexi Kenney makes his Olympic Music Festival debut.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 20, 2023 | 2:00PM | WHEELER THEATER AT FORT WORDEN
VISIONARY WOMEN
A R T I S T S
Alexi Kenney violin
Jason Moon violin*
Clara Neubauer violin*
Laura Liu viola*
Vicki Powell viola
Jennifer Culp cello
Carlo Lay cello*
Robert Carlson piano*
Julio Elizalde piano
*2023 Olympic Chamber Music Fellow
P R O G R A M
Clara SCHUMANN Three Romances for Violin & Piano, Op. 22
Fanny MENDELSSOHN-HENSEL String Quartet in E-flat major (1834)
Amy BEACH Piano Quintet in F-sharp minor, Op. 67 (1907)
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
Unjustly overlooked by history, women composers have produced many masterpieces of chamber music, including the three works featured on this concert. Although Clara Schumann is known for her affiliation with her husband Robert and Johannes Brahms, she was one of the greatest pianists of all time. Her Three Romances for violin and piano showcase her gift for melody and a formidable command of harmony. Felix Mendelssohn’s sister Fanny was seen as equally prodigious a talent as her brother when they were children. However, she was oppressed by the expectations of women in high society and prioritized her family over her career. Her String Quartet is an astonishing work full of intricacy and inspiration. The New York Philharmonic recently discovered that the first piece they ever performed by a woman was by the American composer Amy Beach. Her gorgeous Piano Quintet is full of lush harmonies and sweeping melodies that have earned it a place as a mainstay in chamber music.
2023 Benefit Concert: Celebrating 40 Years!
THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 2023 | 6:00PM | THE PALINDROME, PORT TOWNSEND
TICKETS $100 - 40 Seats Available
THE ROMANTIC PIANO
A R T I S T S
Julio Elizalde piano
Rieko Tsuchida piano
P R O G R A M
SCRIABIN Selected Piano Works
CHOPIN Nocturne in B major, Op. 62 No. 2
CHOPIN Scherzo No. 1 in B minor, Op. 20
CHOPIN Nocturne in F major, Op. 15
CHOPIN Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 31
RAVEL La Valse for Piano Four-Hands (arr. Graban)
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
Celebrate the Olympic Music Festival’s 40th summer on the Olympic Peninsula with an intimate evening of music, food, and friendship! OMF Artistic Director Julio Elizalde is joined by pianist and former Olympic Chamber Music Fellow Rieko Tsuchida in a program of gorgeous piano works by Scriabin, Chopin, and Ravel. This special evening is presented in memory of former OMF Board President Don Froomer and Vice President Geri Lindsey. All proceeds benefit the 2024 Olympic Chamber Music Fellowship.
Secure your seats before this special event sells out!
Chamber Music Masters
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2023 | 2:00PM | WHEELER THEATER AT FORT WORDEN
ECHOES OF BEETHOVEN
A R T I S T S
David Bowlin violin
Dimitri Murrath viola
Efe Baltacıgil cello
Julio Elizalde piano
Robert McDonald piano
P R O G R A M
BRAHMS Viola Sonata in E-flat major, Op. 120 No. 2
BEETHOVEN Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat major, Op. 110
SCHUBERT Piano Trio No. 2 in E-flat major, D. 929
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
Beethoven’s monumental influence on the future of classical music can be best heard in his late piano music. His iconic Piano Sonata in A-flat major, Op. 110 takes the listener through a journey from the spiritual hymns to comical uses of German folk tunes and finally a transcendent use of imitative writing in the style of Bach. Johannes Brahms grappled with the notion that he would be judged by history as a successor to the tradition established by Bach and Beethoven. His sonata for viola and piano, Op. 120 is one of his three final compositions and shows a composer at the height of their power with nothing left to prove. Franz Schubert died only one year after Beethoven but opened a portal from the classical era to the romantic period of music. His second piano trio in E-flat major is arguably the greatest piano trio ever written with a staggering range of emotions that lifts the deepest sorrow to overwhelming victory.
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 | 2:00PM | WHEELER THEATER AT FORT WORDEN
RAVISHING RHAPSODIES
A R T I S T S
David Bowlin violin
Steven Copes violin
Dimitri Murrath viola
Efe Baltacıgil cello
Julio Elizalde piano
Robert McDonald piano
P R O G R A M
DVOŘÁK Terzetto for Two Violins and Viola, Op. 74
FAURÉ Piano Quintet No. 2 in C minor, Op. 115
SCHUMANN Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 63
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
Near the end of his life, the French composer Gabriel Fauré experienced the same fate as Beethoven when he began to lose his hearing. In his final years, he wrote some of his most probing and introspective works including his gorgeous second piano quintet in C minor. Antonín Dvořák completed his Terzetto in one week in hopes of playing it with two violinist friends and it captures the folk music charm that his music is best known for. Robert Schumann’s first piano trio in D minor explores a completely new world of romantic music that was more personal than what had come before.
Season Finale
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 & SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 10, 2023 | 2PM | WHEELER THEATER AT FORT WORDEN
RAY CHEN & JULIO ELIZALDE IN RECITAL
A R T I S T S
Ray Chen violin
Julio Elizalde piano
P R O G R A M
STRAVINSKY Suite Italienne from Pulcinella (arr. Dushkin) (1933)
POULENC Violin Sonata (1943)
VITALI Chaconne in G minor
BRAHMS Hungarian Dance No. 7 in A major (arr. Joachim)
DVOŘÁK Slavonic Dance in E minor, Op. 72 No. 2
MONTI Czardas
C O N C E R T D E T A I L S
Superstar violinist Ray Chen returns to the OMF to join forces with Artistic Director Julio Elizalde at the piano in a tour de force recital including Francis Poulenc’s cabaret inspired Violin Sonata. Viatli’s Chaconne is one of the most legendary works of the violin repertoire and the program concludes with a dazzling set of showpieces that are sure to highlight the power of the 1714 “Dolphin” Stradivarius previously owned by Jascha Heifetz that Ray Chen performs on. Don’t miss the chance to hear this amazing duo right here in Port Townsend before they embark on a tour of North America that will take them to Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles and Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco.
This weekend features the same program on both days.
This concert is generously sponsored by Thornburgh Insurance