PORT TOWNSEND — The opening weekend for the Olympic Music Festival’s 35th annual summer season is this Saturday and Sunday.
The 2018 season is presented in partnership with Centrum at Fort Worden State Park.
The opening weekend will be at Fort Worden Chapel. The other performances will be Aug. 11 through Sept. 9 at the Joseph F. Wheeler Theater.
The Olympic Music Festival (OMF) will offer 12 performances over six weekends, all at 2 p.m. The festival also will present a special educational concert for children and their families Aug. 26; that concert will be at 11 a.m. and, unlike the others, is offered free of charge.
Tickets are available at www.olympicmusicfestival.org or by calling Brown Paper Tickets at 1-800-838-3006. General admission to the opening weekend is $35, with youth 12 and younger admitted free. Admission to other performances ranges from $20 to $40 with children ages 7 to 12 free with reserved seats.
The festival will bring together debuting artists such as cellist Pablo Ferrández, violinist Jinjoo Cho (gold medalist of the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis) and violinist Steven Copes (concertmaster of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra).
Returning artists will include pianist Robert McDonald, Brentano String Quartet violinist Mark Steinberg and Louisville Orchestra Music Director Teddy Abrams.
This is the fourth year of the Olympic Chamber Music Fellowship, the OMF’s cornerstone educational program. The fellowship is made up of five young artists who are selected following an international audition process.
Fellows gain professional experience from performing with mentoring artists, group discussions and one-on-one lessons. This year’s fellows include graduates of the Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music, Yale School of Music and New England Conservatory, among others. The schedule this year “continues to build upon the 35 years of excellence our audience has come to look forward to each summer,” said Artistic Director Julio Elizalde.
“It is a privilege to introduce such wonderful artists to this passionately supportive community. We have worked hard to ensure that this season has something for every musical taste and it should be a very memorable arc of concerts from start to finish.”
Elizalde, a pianist, has performed in major music centers of North America, South America, Europe and Asia to critical acclaim.
Here is the schedule:
• Saturday and Sunday — Opening Weekend: Bach’s “Goldberg Variations” with Steven Copes on violin, Dimitri Murrath on viola and Jennifer Culp on cello.
• Aug. 11 — Rhapsodies from Eastern Europe, with Jinjoo Cho on violin, Ayane Kozasa on viola, Matthew Zalkind on cello, Elizalde on piano and OMF fellows Eunae Koh on violin, Sung Jin Lee on viola, Brigid Coleridge on violin, Julia Yang on cello and Lee Dionne on piano.
• Aug. 12 — Vocal Inspirations, with the same artists who performed the day before.
• Aug. 18 — Schubert’s “Trout Quintet,” with Alexander Fiterstein on clarinet, Kristin Lee on violin, Kozasa on viola, Zalkind on cello, Elizalde on piano and OMF fellows Coleridge on violin, Koh on violin, Sung Jin Lee on viola, Yang on cello and Dionne on piano.
Also, Musicians from GardenMusic, with Teddy Abrams on piano and clarinet, Nathan Farrington on bass and vocals, Gabriel Globus-Hoenich on percussion, Harrison Hollingsworth on bassoon and violin and Tessa Lark on violin.
• Aug. 19 — Musical Fireworks, with Fiterstein on clarinet, Kristin Lee on violin, Kozasa on viola, Zalkind on cello, Elizalde on piano and OMF fellows Coleridge on violin, Koh on violin, Sung Jim Lee on viola, Yang on cello and Dionne on piano.
Also, Musicians from GardenMusic, with Abrams on piano and clarinet, Farrington on bass and vocals, Gabriel Globus-Hoenich on percussion, Harrison Hollingsworth on bassoon and violin and Lark on violin.
• Aug. 25-26 — Lark and Michael Thurber: Bach to Bluegrass, with Lark on violin and performing vocals and Thurber on double bass and performing vocals.
• Aug. 26 — Music for Children & Families, a free one-hour show at 11 a.m., with Lark on violin and performing vocals and Thurber on double bass and performing vocals.
• Sept. 1 — La Belle Èpoque, with Yura Lee on violin, Mark Steinberg on violin, Zalkind on cello, Elizalde on piano and Robert McDonald on piano.
• Sept. 2 — Folk Dances & Melodies, with Yura Lee on violin and viola, Steinberg on violin, Zalkind on cello, Elizalde on piano and McDonald on piano.
• Sept. 8-9 — Season Finale: Romances for Cello & Piano, with Pablo Ferrández on cello and Elizalde on piano.
