About Our Organization
The Boise Chamber Music Series presents concerts by professional, touring chamber music ensembles. Begun in 1984 by the Boise State University Music Department, the Series is now supported by the Dept. of Music and the Boise Chamber Music Society, an organization for the promotion and support of chamber music in the Treasure Valley.
Mission Statement
The Boise Chamber Music Society is a not-for-profit corporation, organized to promote the understanding, enjoyment, and appreciation of chamber music throughout Idaho’s Treasure Valley and across the State, through such means as the sponsorship of chamber music performances, lectures, program notes, and gatherings to meet chamber music performers.
Tax-Deductible Private and Corporate Contributions
are greatly appreciated and may be made to the BCMS through the Boise State Foundation.
Boise Chamber Music Society Board
President, Carla Fromm
Vice President, Patrick Burke
Treasurer, Foad Roghani
Secretary, Jeff Fromm
Local Arrangements, Cindy Sawyers
Jerry Schroeder
Jeanne Belfy
Kent Neupert
Elizabeth Congdon
Linda Staum
Boise State University Liaisons, Nicole Molumby, Eric Alexander, and Linda Kline
Mailing Address
Jeanne Belfy, Executive Director
Boise Chamber Music Series
Boise State Dept. of Music
1910 University Drive
Boise, ID 83725-1560
eighth blackbird performs free Saturday morning miniconcert
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
9/30/10
eighth blackbird performs free Saturday morning miniconcert
The 2010-11 Boise Chamber Music Series presents A Little Morning Music Saturday, Oct. 16, at 10:30 a.m. in the Morrison Center Recital Hall with Grammy-winning eighth blackbird, a contemporary classical music sextet of flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion. This informal, hour-long miniconcert and lecture will feature the members of eighth blackbird in works drawn from their formal concert from the previous evening, as described below:
eighth blackbird shows off its phenomenal virtuosity and renowned theatrical flair in an absorbing, entertaining and motley concert highlighting the kaleidoscopic diversity of recent classical music. English composer Thomas Adés takes us to a children's playground for the high-spirited hijinks of "Catch," while Stephen Hartke's Pulitzer Prize finalist, "Meanwhile," evokes the surreal world of an imaginary Asian court theater with the help of myriad invented instruments. Frenchman Pierre Boulez's "Dérive 1" conjures an ethereal, other-worldly beauty, only to be punctured by countryman Philippe Hurel's dense, swirling hive of notes, "..à mesure," which challenges even eighth blackbird's formidable skills. Music by two New York natives round out the program. Philip Glass's "Music in Similar Motion," with its radically bald, hypnotic repetitions, retains its power to shock and delight, and rising star Missy Mazzoli's "Still Life with Avalanche," "a pile of melodies collapsing in a chaotic free fall," gives musical form to a torrent of powerful and unexpected emotions.
“eighth blackbird play like musicians possessed; excited by the new, determined that their CD audiences will be too, they take wing, soaring on an upthrust of precision-tooled virtuosity.” —BBC
This free event is open to the public on a first-come, first served, open seating basis. For additional information, call 426-1216 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. The events of the Boise Chamber Music Series are supported by the Boise Chamber Music Society and the Boise State University Dept. of Music.
contact: Jeanne Belfy, 426-1216;
Announcing Boise Chamber Music Series 2010-2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 7/26/1010
Announcing Boise Chamber Music Series 2010-2011
This year’s Boise Chamber Music Series opens with an immediate return of the Gryphon Trio on Friday, September 17. After their amazing performance last season, the Gryphon Trio is back by popular demand. With a strong commitment to expanding the piano trio repertoire, the Trio has commissioned and premiered over 50 works. Their 2004 recording, Canadian Premieres, features the work of leading Canadian composers and was awarded a Juno. Their most recent recording, Tango Nuevo, features the music of Astor Piazzolla and Hilario Duran, and represents their tenth CD for the Analekta label. Strongly dedicated to pushing the boundaries of chamber music, the Trio has collaborated on special projects with clarinetist James Campbell, actor Colin Fox, choreographer David Earle, and a host of jazz luminaries at Toronto’s Lula Lounge. Their most ambitious undertaking has been the groundbreaking multimedia production of Christos Hatzis’ Constantinople, which has been performed in Canada and the United States, and was presented by the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden in England in 2006.
Grammy-winning eighth blackbird performs October 15. "eighth blackbird's performances are the picture of polish and precision, and they seem to be thoroughly engaged by music in a broad range of contemporary styles." --The New York Times Since its founding in 1996, eighth blackbird has actively commissioned and recorded new works from such eminent composers as Steve Reich, George Perle, Frederic Rzewski, and Joseph Schwantner, and has commissioned from a younger generation (Jennifer Higdon, Stephen Hartke, . . . ). The group was honored in 2007 with the American Music Center's Trailblazer Award and a Meet The Composer Award. eighth blackbird received the first BMI/Boudleaux-Bryant Fund Commission, was the first contemporary music group to win the Grand Prize at the Concert Artists Guild International Competition, won the 2000 Naumburg Chamber Music Award and the 2004 NEA/CMA Special Commissioning Award, and has received grants from BMI, Meet The Composer, the Greenwall Foundation, and Chamber Music America, among many others. http://www.eighthblackbird.com/
Since winning the prestigious Naumburg Chamber Music Award in 1989 and making their New York debut in 1990 at Alice Tully Hall, the Peabody Trio has appeared on the Boise Chamber Music Series a record five times. They bring to their music making what The Washington Post calls “the romantic fervor of the 20th century greats.” They will be back for their sixth performance on February 11. The Peabody Trio currently serves as the resident faculty ensemble of the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, a position they have held since 1989. They celebrated their 20th season in 2007-08 with the release of the Beethoven Trios Opus 1, Nos. 1 and 3 on Artek Records, the second in their series of the complete piano trios of Beethoven. Gramophone Magazine called this recording a "bold, flexible and vibrant" performance in which Beethoven's music received "consummate consideration." In 2004 the trio released their recording of the Beethoven Opus 70 Trios on Artek, praised by Strad Magazine as "some of the most accomplished Beethoven Trio playing …heard in many a year."
On April 29, we welcome the St. Petersburg Quartet back for their third appearance on the BCMS, and their first time judging the Young Artist String Quartet Competition, on Saturday, April 30. Founded in 1985 as the Leningrad Quartet, the St. Pete’s blazed a trail through international chamber music competitions, winning First Prize at the All-Soviet Union String Quartet Competition, the Silver Medal and a Special Prize at the Tokyo International Competition of Chamber Ensembles, First Prize and both Special Prizes at the Vittorio Gui International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Florence, Italy, and First Prize and the "Grand Prix Musica Viva" at the International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Melbourne, Australia Having recorded nineteen CDs, including the complete quartets of Shostakovich, the St. Petes have achieved a Grammy nomination, "Best Record" honors in both Stereo Review and Gramophone, and the Chamber Music America/WQXR Prize for Best CD of 2001.
http://www.stpetersburgquartet.com/
For season subscriptions to the 2010-11 Boise Chamber Music Series, call 426-1216 and leave contact information. Season tickets are $100 for the four concerts, all of which take place in the Morrison Center Recital Hall, at 7:30 pm on Friday evenings. The Series is supported by the Boise Chamber Music Society and the BSU Dept. of Music. http://boisechambermusicseries.org/
Contact: Jeanne Belfy, 426-1216; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
eighth blackbird Next on BOISE CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
9/30/10
eighth blackbird Next on BOISE CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES
The 2010-11 Boise Chamber Music Series continues Friday, Oct. 15, at 7:30 with Grammy-winning eighth blackbird, a contemporary classical music sextet of flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion.
eighth blackbird shows off its phenomenal virtuosity and renowned theatrical flair in an absorbing, entertaining and motley concert highlighting the kaleidoscopic diversity of recent classical music. English composer Thomas Adés takes us to a children's playground for the high-spirited hijinks of "Catch," while Stephen Hartke's Pulitzer Prize finalist, "Meanwhile," evokes the surreal world of an imaginary Asian court theater with the help of myriad invented instruments. Frenchman Pierre Boulez's "Dérive 1" conjures an ethereal, other-worldly beauty, only to be punctured by countryman Philippe Hurel's dense, swirling hive of notes, "..à mesure," which challenges even eighth blackbird's formidable skills. Music by two New York natives round out the program. Philip Glass's "Music in Similar Motion," with its radically bald, hypnotic repetitions, retains its power to shock and delight, and rising star Missy Mazzoli's "Still Life with Avalanche," "a pile of melodies collapsing in a chaotic free fall," gives musical form to a torrent of powerful and unexpected emotions.
“eighth blackbird play like musicians possessed; excited by the new, determined that their CD audiences will be too, they take wing, soaring on an upthrust of precision-tooled virtuosity.” —BBC
Combining bracing virtuosity with an alluring sense of irreverence, the sextet debunks the myth that contemporary music is only for a cerebral few. The ensemble attracts fans of all ages to its performances and recordings, which sparkle with wit and pound with physical energy; it inhabits and explores the sound-world of new music with comfort, conviction, and infectious enthusiasm. eighth blackbird is lauded for its performing style–often playing from memory with theatrical flair–and for making new music accessible to wide audiences. “It’s new music you can bring home to your mother,” observed the Washington Post. Profiled in the New York Times and NPR’s All Things Considered, the sextet has also been featured on Bloomberg TV’s Muse, CBS News Sunday Morning, St. Paul Sunday, Weekend America, and The Next Big Thing, among others.
For single tickets at $25/$20 to the Friday, Oct. 15 concert in the Velma V. Morrison Recital Hall, call 426-1216 or email The events of the Boise Chamber Music Series are supported by the Boise Chamber Music Society and the Boise State Dept. of Music.
contact: Jeanne Belfy, 426-1216;
