Live concerts with live audiences (as well as with worldwide streaming) return to Chicago with an unusual series of chamber music at the North Shore Chamber Music Festival
North Shore Chamber Music Festival would have celebrated its 10th anniversary season in June but, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, the celebrations had to be cancelled.
This exceptional and innovative festival now returns to Chicago (and to worldwide audiences online) with a series of six concerts – titled Onstage/Offstage – the first three in September (10th and 11th) and October (17th). For more information click here.
Curated and organised by the outstanding violinist Vadim Gluzman and his regular chamber music partner, the pianist Angela Yoffe, the concerts of their festival have always incorporated high quality music making as well as meaningful verbal communication with their audiences. Over the years, their talkback with the public after every concert has become a much-appreciated tradition. At the end of every concert, instead of going back and forth taking curtain calls, the participating artists gather on stage and talk to the audience, encouraging them to ask questions, to share their feelings and thoughts about the performance they had just heard, the repertoire of the concert and related matters. Many of the most inspiring questions have come from children in the audience.
An important part of the festival activities is the Arkady Fomin Scholarship Fund (click here) which supports and encourages outstanding young musicians by providing them with scholarships and, just as importantly, giving them performance opportunities alongside seasoned artists. By now the NSCMF festival has almost 50 young recipients on their roster. Later, in the Spring of 2021, there will be a special concert including AFSF young artists under the forthcoming onstage/offstage series.
The forthcoming Onstage/Offstage concerts will take place at a beautiful location in downtown Chicago, with a limited audience (of up to 50 people, in accordance with regulations) but simultaneously also with worldwide online live streaming. Every concert is streamed for 48 hours to allow all time zones plenty of opportunity to stream it at their comfort.
The first three concerts of the festival take place on 10th September ( ‘Jewish Kaleidoscope’ click here), 11th September (‘Love Triangle’ click here) and on 17th October (‘Charlie Chaplin’s Smile’ multimedia performance click here).
For these three concerts violinist Vadim Gluzman and pianist Angela Yoffe are joined by artists of also high calibre, such as pianist William Wolfram, cellist Mark Kosower, clarinettist Ilya Shterenberg and violinist Philippe Quint.
I myself had the privilege of attending and enjoying many of Vadim Gluzman’s concerts with or without my students. We are all looking forward to the forthcoming festival.
To book for the concerts click here.
Agnes Kory