Presenting a Marathon Week of Music

As part of our dedication to bring the passion and joy of chamber music to the community, Manchester Music Festival presents concerts, recitals, and complimentary events each week between July 12 and August 11, 2018.

During the final week of July, MMF is pleased to present a jam-packed slate of performances, with nine events in just four days.

At Southern Vermont Arts Center, on Thursday, July 26th, at 7:30PM, MMF presents world-renowned musicians in scintillating works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Theodore Dubois, and Sergei Tanayev. Longtime festival favorite, pianist Vassily Primakov, is joined by fellow MMF veterans: oboist Rita Mitsel, violinist Axel Strauss, violist Ara Gregorian, and cellist Alexis Gerlach. Tickets are $33 for adults and $15 for students. 

Preceding the 7:30PM concert, don't miss Strauss and Primakov performing a free Pre-Concert Recital at Southern Vermont Arts Center’s Arkell Pavilion at 4:30PM, playing one of the great violin sonatas of the ages: the Prokofieff Sonata No. 1 in F minor for Violin & Piano, Op. 80. Then, following the Pre-Concert Recital, join Artistic Director Adam Neiman at Yester House for one of his popular free Pre-Concert Talks at 6:45PM.

MMF presents an afternoon vocal recital at 3:00PM on Friday, July 27, at the Snopek-Telscher Home on beautiful Stratton Mountain. This concert spotlights young musicians who have spent the week participating in MMF's 2018 Vocal Workshop. Spearheading the workshop is Musical America's "Collaborative Pianist of the Year," Warren Jones, alongside opera stars from the Metropolitan Opera and other top houses around the globe. Tickets are $25 for adults and $5 for students.

As part of MMF's commitment to education and community outreach, the festival presents a pair of free masterclasses on Saturday, July 28, through which the audience may witness the special and intimate process of faculty artists working closely to guide the young performers of the 2018 MMF Young Artists Program. Violinist Axel Strauss and pianist Vassily Primakov are the featured master teachers for the week, and their classes will take place at 11:00AM (Strauss) and 1:30PM (Primakov) at Manchester’s First Congregational Church.

Also on Saturday afternoon, July 28 at 2:00PM, the community is invited to MMF’s annual Family Concert & Ice Cream Celebration, at the Riley Center for the Arts at Burr & Burton Academy. School-age children and their families are encouraged to attend this free interactive performance featuring percussionist Pius Cheung and select musicians from the 2018 MMF Young Artists Program. The performance will be followed by an ice cream social and is sponsored by the James H. and Irene Hunter Charitable Trust with additional funding from the The Kenneth L. Robbins Educational Outreach Fund and W.H. Shaw Insurance. 

To cap an epic musical Saturday (July 28) in Manchester, MMF presents one of its most anticipated concerts of the season: A Night at the Opera. The celebrated cast of opera stars–featuring soprano Elaine Alvarez, mezzo-soprano Renee Tatum, tenor Kang Wang, and baritone Sidney Outlaw–will be joined by pianist Warren Jones in an accessible program of well-known arias and ensembles. The performance is at 7:30PM at SVAC, and tickets are $40 for adults and $15 for students.

Conclude this rich musical weekend by joining the future stars of international chamber music in concert by the 2018 MMF Young Artists, at SVAC on Sunday, July 29th, at 2:00PM. Tickets are just $10.