Portland Chamber Music Festival opens with well-known classics, new works
The East Coast Chamber Orchestra. (Photo courtesy of Portland Chamber Music Festival)
It’s summertime and the Portland Chamber Music Festival is presenting another in its long-running warm weather series of concerts.
Now in its 33rd season, the festival will again be held at Stevens Square Theater in Portland from Aug. 13-22, with four programs of chamber music performed by dozens of world-class musicians.
Melissa Reardon will perform with the Portland Chamber Music Festival. (Photo by Lauren Desberg)
Artistic Director Melissa Reardon likes the mix of signature classic works with some hidden gems that makes the festival special. She said that, in recognition of this year’s celebration of the U.S.’s 250th anniversary, every program includes a work by an American composer.
Among several returnees, the East Coast Chamber Orchestra — of which violist Reardon is a member — will be celebrating its own 25th anniversary. Their contributions this season will include the delightfully tuneful “Serenade for Strings” by Antonín Dvořák on Aug. 22 and Béla Bartók’s high-spirited “Divertimento” on Aug. 20. Reardon suspended her serious artist reserve for a moment, and described the latter as “pretty awesome.”
Saxophonist Steven Banks will perform in the Portland Chamber Music Festival. (Photo courtesy of Portland Chamber Music Festival)
Saxophonist Steven Banks will be back, this time to enliven works by Charles Loeffler on Aug. 13 and Caroline Shaw on Aug. 15. Banks noted that his instrument (soprano sax on both evenings) can often create a more “vibrant and expressive interpretation” to works originally composed for other instruments.
But he strives to “meet in the middle” with the other players for the sake of the overall sound. When asked, Banks asserts that, while his instrument is often associated with jazz, he is “a classical musician at heart.” He does acknowledge, however, that the late, great Cannonball Adderley is one of his favorites jazz players.
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Among the other likely highlights of this year’s festival will be the Maine premiere of an original piano work by festival favorite Henry Kramer, who will perform the piece on Aug. 20.
Kramer’s three-movement creation called “Dirigo (‘Dare I Go’)” was inspired by the sights and sensations that he encountered during his formative years spent in Cape Elizabeth. He cites the influence of the music of Maurice Ravel and Charles Ives as important to this new composition. The still youthful musician wrote that, since he believes that music is “all about communication and sharing,” he’s “especially excited to see how locals respond.”
Henry Kramer. (Photo courtesy of Portland Chamber Music Festival)
Kramer is also pleased to be performing his first collaboration with ECCO on Aug. 22. The early, one-movement concerto by Franz Liszt, subtitled “Malédiction,” is described by the pianist as “exploring sinister themes.”
A piano four hands performance of Igor Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” on Aug. 15 by the married duo of Soyeon Kate Lee and Ran Dank should also stir a reawakening, even in August.
Executive Director Alice Kornhauser and Reardon have worked especially hard trying to solve what the former calls the “giant jigsaw puzzle that is pairing musicians with hosts” for the duration of the festival. Kornhauser further notes that festival players are “famously foodies.” So, everything from formal dinners to boisterous tasting contests are usually among the offstage events.
Performers Ran Dank and Soyeon Kate Lee. (Photo courtesy of Portland Chamber Music Festival)
Prominent in Kornhauser’s Portland Chamber Music Festival memories is the time soloist Frank Huang became puzzled by loud noises from outside the then-festival site in Hannaford Hall at the University of Southern Maine. He was eventually informed by an audience member that it was fireworks going off after a Portland Sea Dogs game at Hadlock Field. Now that the festival is located a little farther away from the ballpark, the music should provide most of the excitement this year.
Steve Feeney is a freelance writer who lives in Portland.
Portland Chamber Music Festival, Aug. 13-22, Stevens Square Theater, 631 Stevens Ave., Portland. For tickets and schedule, go to pcmf.org.
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Tagged: music and performance, Portland Chamber Music Festival
