World-Renown Musicians + Cherished Repertoire Alongside New Music + Instrumental Variety
For its 2022/23 season, Chamber Music Northwest (CMNW) will present an intriguing line-up of seven concerts at four venues throughout the Portland metro area, including three professionally recorded concerts that will be available online. Chamber Music Northwest’s season ahead is a journey of musical discovery through far-ranging musical repertoire featuring chamber music favorites alongside bold new works and lesser-heard masterpieces presented with a diverse array of instrumentation, and many of the most acclaimed musicians in the world.
The 2022/23 year-round season includes a diverse showcase of internationally-acclaimed artists ranging from the groundbreaking Sphinx Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra and superstar cellists Sharon Robinson, Alisa Weilerstein (performing Bach’s Complete Cello Suites), to Metropolitan Opera baritone Will Liverman with Gloria Chien, and CMNW’s Artists-in-Residence, Catalyst Quartet with a program featuring all women composers. Gracing CMNW’s stage this season is Portland’s own Amadeus Chamber Orchestra, electric violinists Soovin Kim, Jamie Laredo and Anna Lee, as well as the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music’s leading alumni and students, and screen legend John de Lancie in A Soldier’s Tale.
Highlights of the 2022/23 season include:
- CMNW 2022 Protégés Anna Lee (violin) and Alistair Coleman (composer) for the first season concert with Portland’s Amadeus Chamber Orchestra performing well-loved works (9/29/22)
- Groundbreaking, much-lauded Sphinx Virtuosi Orchestra with a diverse program, largely by living and underrepresented composers (10/11/22)
- A quartet of highly-celebrated musicians Jaime Laredo, Sharon Robinson, Nokuthula Ngwenyama, Anna Polonsky will play Mozart, Dvořák, and the West Coast premiere of Ngwenyama’s Elegy (11/10/22)
- Renowned baritone Will Liverman with Artistic Director Gloria Chien with a powerful program of works centered on the African American experience (12/12/22)
- In a feat rarely undertaken, the internationally recognized and heart-stirring cellist Alisa Weilerstein will perform the complete Bach Cello Suites in one sensational evening (2/4/22)
- Curtis Institute of Music alumni Soovin Kim and David Shifrin, joined by the on-tour orchestra, and film star John de Lancie present a fascinating line-up of classics and new works, along with The Solder’s Tale (3/14/22)
- CMNW’s critically-acclaimed 2022/23 Artists-in-Residence Catalyst Quartet close the season with an inspirational program comprised entirely of women composers with pieces representative of the past, and the present day (4/16/22)
From Artistic Directors Gloria Chien and Soovin Kim:
“Chamber Music Northwest’s 2022/23 season is filled with exciting, colorful, and revelatory programs. With the complete Bach solo cello suites, classics by Mozart, Brahms and Tchaikovsky, theatrical Stravinsky, spirituals, chamber orchestras, and the Catalyst Quartet’s groundbreaking work with living and underrepresented composers — we present the Portland community with a sensational array of moving experiences!”
Chamber Music Northwest 2022/23 Season
Subscriptions
Seven-concert subscription package range: $240-$450
Under 30: $140
Under 18: $70
Four-concert subscription package range: $130-$250
Under 30: $80
Under 18: $40
Subscription Packages
At-Home 2022/23 Season Series
3-concert pass: $75
Anna Lee with Amadeus Chamber Orchestra ● Premieres 10/13
Will Liverman & Gloria Chien ● Premieres 12/26
Catalyst Quartet: UNCOVERED | Women Composers ● Premieres 4/30
At-Home Pass
Single Tickets
Range: $32.50-$62.50
Under 30: $20
Under 18: $10
Senior Rush: $30 (at the door)
Arts 4 All: $5 (advance/at the door)
> Single Tickets go on sale September 15
Key Links
At-Home Concert Series
Chamber Music Northwest will offer three concerts as a part of their 2022/23 AT-HOME Season Series. These concerts include: CMNW Protégé Artist Anna Lee with Portland’s Amadeus Chamber Orchestra and CMNW Artistic Director Soovin Kim, world-lauded baritone Will Liverman with applauded pianist and CMNW Artistic Director Gloria Chien, and the ground-breaking Catalyst Quartet with a program focused entirely on women composers. These online concerts will be professionally recorded by Portland video producer Invisible Harness, and streamed online beginning two weeks after their live concert date. The AT-HOME concerts will be available online at cmnw.org for two weeks.
Health & Safety
For concerts during the 2022/23 Season, CMNW will not continue to check proof of COVID vaccination. Patrons will be strongly encouraged to wear face masks at all venues, and during the concerts. CMNW will adapt the policy over the course of the season, as necessary.
2022/23 Concerts
Violin + Chamber Orchestra
Anna Lee with Amadeus Chamber Orchestra
Thursday, September 29 @ 7:30pm
Patricia Reser Center for the Arts
Fresh on the heels of her electrifying CMNW debut performances at our Summer Festival, Protégé Violinist Anna Lee returns to Portland to thrill us again! Anna is joined by Portland’s own Amadeus Chamber Orchestra, which is comprised of some of the Northwest’s finest professional musicians. CMNW and Amadeus Artistic Directors, Soovin Kim and Adam LaMotte, join the ensemble for a sensational evening of virtuosity, including CMNW’s Protégé Composer Alistair Coleman’s visionary Moonshot and Bach’s beloved Double Concerto for Two Violins.
Co-Presented in partnership with Amadeus Chamber Orchestra.
“Lee was a mythical creature, drawing the audience under a spell with virtuosity and crystal-clear clouds of sound.” ~ Neue Musikzeitung
Learn about the musicians:
Anna Lee, violin
Amadeus Chamber Orchestra
Concert Program
BACH Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor, BWV 104
ALISTAIR COLEMAN Moonshot for Violin and String Orchestra (2019)
TCHAIKOVSKY Serenade for Strings in C Major, Op. 48
Chamber Orchestra
Sphinx Virtuosi Orchestra: Songs for Our Times
Tuesday, October 11 @ 7:30pm
Patricia Reser Center for the Performing Arts
Heralded for a kaleidoscopically varied repertoire and bold thematic programming, Sphinx Virtuosi is a dynamic professional chamber orchestra that is the flagship performing ensemble of the Sphinx Organization. Creative living voices from the Black and Brown communities are celebrated in this collection of works inspired by events of the present. Aiming to uplift contemporary and historic voices, the program pays tribute to traditions through today’s lens, and illuminates the light and hope generated by empathy, listening, remembrance, and visioning. Eighteen of Sphinx’s most acclaimed artists will take you on a soaring and inspiring evening of stunning works.
Co-Presented in partnership with the Patricia Reser Center for the Arts.
“…true to their name, the Sphinx Virtuosi call up the vision of an iconic mythological feline with its immeasurable power, unwavering command, and soulful beauty.” ~ The Washington Post
Learn about the musicians:
Sphinx Virtuosi Orchestra
Concert Program
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Strum (2006)
MICHAEL DUDLEY Prayer for our Times
VALERIE COLEMAN Tracing Visions (2022)
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Divided for Cello & Orchestra (2022)
CARLOS SIMON Between Worlds (2019)
VILLA-LOBOS Bachianas Brasilerias No. 9 (1945)
CARLOS FARIÑAS Punto y Tonadas (1981)
BEETHOVEN Violin Sonata No. 9, Op. 47 (Arr. for string orchestra by Rubén Regel)
Strings + Piano
Beloved Piano Quartets
Thursday, November 10 7:30pm
The Old Church Concert Hall
For more than four decades of stellar success around the globe — including many award-winning recordings and newly commissioned works — violinist Jaime Laredo and cellist Sharon Robinson have dazzled audiences and critics alike. In this rare evening of musical mastery, they will pair with award-winning pianist Anna Polonsky and acclaimed composer/violist Nokuthula Ngwenyama, for quartet masterpieces by Mozart and Dvořák. This stirring concert will be the West Coast premiere of Ngwenyama’s moving Elegy, a response to the events in spring 2020, including the killing of George Floyd — co-commissioned by CMNW.
This special concert is dedicated to the memory of pianist Joseph Kalichstein, founding member of the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio.
“It’s a rare luxury to hear music-making of such integrity and joy, and an equally rare privilege to be party to such an intimate musical conversation.” ~ American Record Guide, of the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio
Learn about the musicians:
Jaime Laredo, violin
Sharon Robinson, cello
Nokuthula Ngwenyama, viola
Anna Polonsky, piano
Concert Program
MOZART Piano Quartet in G minor, K. 478
NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Elegy (2022)
DVOŘÁK Piano Quartet No.2 in E-flat, Op. 87
Voice + Piano
Baritone Will Liverman & Pianist Gloria Chien
Monday, December 12 @ 7:30pm
PSU, Lincoln Recital Hall
Called “a voice for this historic moment” (The Washington Post), Grammy-nominated baritone Will Liverman took the Metropolitan Opera by storm last fall as Charles in Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up in My Bones. Following Fire’s success, the Met announced that Liverman will star in Anthony Davis’ X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. The second opera by a Black composer in the company’s history, X has its premiere in
November. CMNW Artistic Director and pianist Gloria Chien will join Liverman to perform in this intimate and powerful recital.
“…velvet-voiced baritone Will Liverman is out to make the classical music canon more inclusive…” ~ NPR
Learn about the musicians:
Will Liverman, baritone
Gloria Chien, piano
Concert Program
AFRICAN-AMERICAN SPIRITUAL Steal Away (Arr. Shawn Okpebholo)
PRICE Songs to the Dark Virgin (1946)
PRICE Night (1946)
RAVEL Don Quichotte à Dulcinée
CARL LOEWE Selections from 3 Balladen
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Selections from Songs of Travel
AFRICAN-AMERICAN SPIRITUAL Down to the River to Pray (Arr. Will Liverman)
FREDERICK LOEWE If Ever I Would Leave You (Arr. Will Liverman)
GEOGHEGAN Ten Thousand Miles Away (Arr. Steven Mark Kohn)
Solo Cello
Alisa Weilerstein: The Complete Bach Cello Suites
Saturday, February 4 @ 6pm
The Old Church Concert Hall
In a rare mega-concert event, the “technically flawless and deeply expressive” (The New York Times) cellist Alisa Weilerstein, performs all six of Bach’s powerfully moving Cello Suites in a single concert. Weilerstein — featured in our 2020-21 virtual concerts — is known for her commanding performances of cello repertoire classics, and this intimate solo cello feat of musicianship is of epic proportions. This exciting music marathon will have an early start time, and an extended intermission with rejuvenating sustenance and libations before embarking on the second half.
“An exceptional cellist and distinguished musician…Weilerstein has carefully considered the path through these works, finding a magnitude of emotion. Weilerstein’s contemporary approach is respectful of the Baroque origins but brings a highly expressive performance.” ~ The Classic Review
Learn about the musician:
Alisa Weilerstein, cello
Concert Program
J. S. BACH
Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major
Cello Suite No. 2 in D Minor
Cello Suite No. 3 in C Major
Cello Suite No. 4 in E-flat Major
Cello Suite No. 5 in C Minor
Cello Suite No. 6 in D Major
Music + Storytelling
Curtis On Tour: L’Histoire du Soldat (The Soldier’s Tale)
Tuesday, March 14 @ 7:30pm
Alberta Rose Theatre
A thrilling tale of trickery and magic, Igor Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du Soldat comes to life through an ensemble of renowned Curtis Institute of Music alumni leading their finest student musicians. Hailed as “One of the world’s leading music academies” (BBC Culture), two preeminent Curtis Institute graduates — CMNW Artistic Director Emeritus David Shifrin (1980) and Artistic Director Soovin Kim (2020) — team up with Curtis’s rising-star performers, and are joined beloved actor and narrator John de Lancie (Star Trek & Breaking Bad) who voices the characters for this dramatic treat. The program also features stirring masterpieces by Penderecki, Poulenc, and composer Viet Cuong, another Curtis alumnus.
Curtis on Tour is made possible by the Nina von Maltzahn Global Touring Initiative of the Curtis Institute of Music.
“For more than 10 years, Curtis on Tour artists and ensembles have delighted audiences around the globe with performances that are ‘exhilarating from beginning to end…’”
— The Washington Post
Learn about the artists:
Curtis on Tour/Curtis Institute, ensemble
Soovin Kim, violin
David Shifrin, clarinet
John de Lancie, narrator
Concert Program
VIET CUONG Well-Groomed for Solo Snare Drum (2019)
POULENC Sonata for Clarinet & Bassoon in D Major
PENDERECKI Duo Concertante for Violin and Double Bass
NICHOLAS DIBERARDINO (New Commission)
STRAVINSKY L’Histoire du Soldat (The Soldier’s Tale)
Strings
Catalyst Quartet: UNCOVERED | Remarkable Women Composers
Sunday, April 16 @ 4pm
The Old Church Concert Hall
Hailed by The New York Times as “invariably energetic and finely burnished…playing with earthy vigor,” the Grammy Award-winning Catalyst Quartet was founded by the internationally acclaimed Sphinx Organization, which is dedicated to transforming lives through the power of diversity in the arts. Catalyst combines a serious commitment to diversity, education, and contemporary works with virtuosic playing “reminiscent of great quartets of the past such as the Guarneri and Budapest” (Richmond Times). In this concert, CMNW’s 2022-23 Artists-in-Residence will continue their celebration of music by Black composers with selections from the quartet’s acclaimed multi-volume anthology of albums, UNCOVERED, that highlight masterworks by classical composers previously overlooked because of their race or gender.
“Like all great chamber groups, the Catalyst Quartet is beautiful to watch, like a family in lively conversation at the dinner table: anticipating, interrupting, changing subjects.”
— The New York Times
Learn about the musicians:
Catalyst Quartet, string ensemble
Concert Program
CAROLINE SHAW Bittersweet synonym
ANGELICA NEGRÓN Lo infinito
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Build
JOAN TOWER A short flight
TERESA CAREÑO String Quartet in B Minor
GERMAINE TAILLEFERRE String Quartet in B Minor
FANNY MENDELSSOHN String Quartet in E-Flat Major
About Chamber Music Northwest:
Now in its 52nd season, Chamber Music Northwest shares the richness and diversity of chamber music with more than 50,000 people through 80 events annually, including our Summer Festival of outstanding concerts, illuminating outreach activities, educational programs and support of young musicians, and innovative collaborations across the Portland Metro region.
Chamber Music Northwest’s mission is to inspire our community through concerts and events celebrating the richness and diversity of chamber music, performed by artists of the highest caliber, presenting our community with exceptional opportunities for enjoyment, education, and reflection. Chamber Music Northwest is led by Artistic Directors Gloria Chien and Soovin Kim, and Executive Director Peter Bilotta.
As one of the nation’s leading chamber music presenters, Chamber Music Northwest brings to our community the world’s greatest musicians and composers, from rising-star members of our Protégé Project and exceptional local musicians to world-renowned artists that include Grammy Award winners, Avery Fisher Prize honorees, and MacArthur ‘Genius Award’ recipients. Together they collaborate to perform the expansive 500-year chamber music repertoire, ranging from beloved classics and hidden masterpieces to less conventional projects and contemporary works.
In June 2022, Chamber Music Northwest (CMNW) launched their new Young Artist Institute (YAI), an intensive education program for 16 talented string players from around the world, ages 14-18. The four-week YAI program included a faculty of esteemed musicians and teachers: CMNW’s Artistic Director Soovin Kim, Jessica Lee (violin), Nicholas Cords (viola), and Peter Stumpf (cello). The Institute was managed by Alyssa Tong, and young artist mentors Katie Danforth and Paul Kim. The program also included a Collaborative Piano Fellowship for two international pianists who collaborated daily with YAI students and faculty in rehearsals and performances.
Chamber Music Northwest is an international leader in celebrating chamber music’s enduring relevance and diversity, with more than 100 commissions and premieres of new works as well as its Protégé Project, which cultivates the next generation of dynamic chamber music performers by supporting exceptional, early-career chamber musicians and composers in their professional development.