Sarasota Music Festival reveals promise of young artists in varied concerts

The first week of the Sarasota Music Festival, which continues through June 24, delivered a surprising array of current classical music experiences in a variety of packages. There was something new even for those who have attended these concerts for decades.

The festival was founded in 1965 and some traditions remain from those early years: world-class faculty artists mentoring a select few of the most talented young musicians from the U.S. and far beyond, and concerts that highlight the talents of all.

Each week is filled with intense rehearsals, masterclasses (many open to those with a Festival Pass), and four unique concerts for the public. It is an absolute treat to be able to attend all four in a given week. There is a certain momentum and gathering excitement as the week progresses.

The Buzz of Inclusion

Each week begins with the Artist Showcase concert held in Holley Hall, a chamber space that seats fewer than 500. You may be sitting next to some of the Festival Fellows (students) or faculty members, haring in a heart-warming buzz of energy.

The program consists of chamber music for two and three musicians at a time placing each in the spotlight and reveaing the nuances of musicianship and communication required for excellent performances. The duos such as Amy Beach’s “Romance” for violin and piano and the musical fairy tales in Robert Schumann’s “Märchenbilder” were caressing, unobtrusive, and lovely. With just one more player and a shift in stylistic origins, both the Johannes Brahms Piano Trio No 1 in B Major and Valerie Coleman’s “Rubispheres” were more forcefully energetic.

One of the welcome trends I noticed was that there was a deeper representation of diversity on the program (two female composers to two male!). Likewise, with 12 new faculty artists this year we see a notable fresh wave of new voices and diversity there as well.

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Concert details: A guide to the concerts and performers at 2023 Sarasota Music Festival

Bigger Stage, Bigger Stakes

On Friday night the performance of chamber music moves to the Sarasota Opera House where the hall, audience and ensembles are bigger. What we lose in up-close intimacy from Holley Hall we gain in loftier grandeur. These concerts bring faculty artists and fellows together performing many significant works of the chamber music repertoire.

The first Festival Friday featured faculty violinist Melissa White in the solo role of Vivaldi’s “Summer” from “The Four Seasons” accompanied by nine fellows and faculty member Michael Adcock on harpsichord. It was a buoyant and evocative performance that fit well with the festival’s theme of music as storytelling.

Signs of diversity continued to peek through with the inclusion of the trio “Four Folk Songs” by contemporary Peruvian-American composer Gabriela Lena Frank on a program with the old men Vivaldi, Dvořák, and Janáček. The Frank trio consisted entirely of fellows delivering a polished performance amid what one must assume was a big stakes situation.

Similarly, there was little to differentiate the professionals from the fellows in Janáček’s colorful scenes from his youth in “Mládí” and Dvořák’s exploration of the “American sound” in his String Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 97.

Everyone On Stage

For those who love a full orchestra sound, the Festival Saturday concerts in the Opera House deliver all you might expect with an overture, concerto and symphony. Audiences during the Festival dress more casually across the board, but the “big” concert on Saturday brings out a few more high heels and suit coats than normal. The friendly bustle is a treat.

This first Saturday was filled with music of good humor from the fairy dust of Mendelssohn’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream Suite” to Beethoven’s famous rural musings in his Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 (“Pastorale”). In between was Robert Schumann’s Concerto in A Minor, Op. 54 with Anne-Marie McDermott, a renowned concert artist and a 1985 Festival alumna. McDermott was a fresh surprise sharing depth of musical heart and soul.

Young Stars on the Rise

By Sunday afternoon I didn’t think I could be further impressed by the musicianship of the fellows, but that’s why most people, including whole families, show up for the weekly Rising Stars concert. This is your chance to hear the stars of tomorrow.

These musicians met for the first time just a week earlier and began rehearsing together for the first time. These public performances reveal full command of technique and in most cases, airtight ensemble playing, displaying one mind of interpretation and phrasing.

The chamber selections are generally the favorites, the best movements, the juiciest bits for the musicians to dig into and for us to enjoy. Eight separate ensembles, from trios to quintets, brought us a movement or two by composers such as Beethoven and Prokofiev or Fanny Mendelssohn and Valerie Coleman (again, the women are represented).

If there ever was a raucous, feel-good classical chamber music concert, this is it. Every time. Amazing.

The festival continues for two more weeks with different combinations of faculty members and fellows in similar chamber or orchestral programs. For more information: 941-953-3434; sarasotaorchestra.org

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Young musicians shine in opening weekend of Sarasota Music Festival