Students & Guest Artists from four continents convene at the Schulich School of Music at McGill University for Musical Chairs 2018
The Schulich School of Music at McGill University welcomes an international array of guest artists and student ensembles for the Musical Chairs Chamber Music Festival, two packed weeks of workshops, masterclasses, and performances – all open to the public. Inspired by a passion for chamber music and the unique musical experiences it offers, Musical Chairs brings 10 guest artists and 6 guest student ensembles from 4 continents together with 52 students and 12 professors from the Schulich School. Events take place between February 25 and March
4; and between March 12 and 17. Musical Chairs performances, which mix together students from farflung conservatories in new ensembles, take place on the two Saturday afternoons, March 3 at 3pm and March 17 at 12pm. The opening and closing concerts will also be webcast. Concerts on Tuesday, February 27 at 7:30pm featuring cellist Johannes Moser; and Friday, March 2 at 7:30 pm featuring cellist Rafael Rosenfeld (both at Pollack Hall), are presented in collaboration with Montréal en Lumière.
Stéphane Lemelin, Chair of the Department of Performance at the Schulich School comments, “Musical Chairs is a reflection of our commitment to chamber music as part of every performer’s training. We believe strongly in the power of chamber music as a learning and development tool for student musicians, fostering team work, cooperation, and communication – all qualities important in a musician’s career.” Douglas McNabney, Chamber Music Coordinator, says: “This is a tremendous opportunity for our students to meet and work with their counterparts from around the world. It is essential as a young musician to place yourself in a larger context.”
The student ensembles arriving in Montreal to join their Schulich counterparts are from: the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing; Mozarteum University in Salzburg, Austria; the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo; the Queensland Conservatorium in Brisbane, Australia; the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Finland; and the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore. The guests artists, who will offer masterclasses, coachings, and also perform with student ensembles include: Pianist Vebjørn Anvik from Norway; David Dolan, from London (UK) who will teach improvisation; Finnish pianist Juhani Lagerspetz; Fan Lei, clarinetist, and violinist Xie Nan, professors from Beijing; well-known German-Canadian cellist Johannes Moser; Wolfgang Redik, violinist from the Mozarteum; Swiss cellist Rafael Rosenfeld; Meta Weiss, an American cellist teaching in Brisbane; and pianist Lim Yan from Singapore.
To see the complete listing of events for week one, click here.
To see the complete listing of events for week two, click here.
