Past Seminars
This page lists topics and presenters from past seasons of the Conference Seminar Series.
2024 Seminars
2023 Seminars
2022 Seminars
2021 Seminars
2020 Seminars
2019 Seminars
2018 Seminars
2017 Seminars
2016 Seminars
2015 Seminars
2014 Seminars
2013 Seminars
2012 Seminars
2011 Seminars
2010 Seminars
2009 Seminars
2008 Seminars
2007 Seminars
2006 Seminars
2005 Seminars
2004 Seminars
2024 Seminars
There was no public Seminar Series at the 2024 Conference.
2023 Seminars
There was no public Seminar Series at the 2023 Conference.
2022 Seminars
There was no public Seminar Series at the 2022 Conference.
2021 Seminars
There was no Seminar Series at the 2021 Conference.
2020 Seminars
There was no Conference in 2020.
2019 Seminars
THURSDAY, JULY 25, 2019, 7:30 PM
Brahms, Art Collector of Fantasy and Surrealism
Styra Avins
This seminar was made possible by the generous support of the Barbara and Jerry Hulka Fund.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 1, 2019, 7:30 PM
Playing with Time Through Time: Examining the changing role of rubato in historical recordings of chamber music performance
Alex Fortes
THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2019, 7:30 PM
How to Accomplish at Least 30% More in Each Practice Session
Jacqueline Leclair
To Top2018 Seminars
THURSDAY, JULY 26, 2018, 7:30 PM
Pulse and Breath
Jo-Ann Sternberg
This seminar was made possible by the generous support of the Barbara and Jerry Hulka Fund.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 2018, 7:30 PM
An Exploration of Béla Bartók's String Quartet #6
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Stephen Reid, cello
THURSDAY, AUGUST 9, 2018, 7:30 PM
If By Your Art: A Conversation with Paul Moravec
Frank Daykin
2017 Seminars
THURSDAY, JULY 27, 2017, 7:30 PM
Music for Social Impact
Claire Bryant
THURSDAY, AUGUST 3, 2017, 7:30 PM
Beethoven: String Quartet in c-sharp minor, Op. 131
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, AUGUST 10, 2017, 7:30 PM
Composing String Quartets
Donald Crockett
FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, 2017, 7:30 PM
Breaking Down Hierarchies in Chamber Music Interactions
Robert Merfeld
To Top2016 Seminars
THURSDAY, JULY 28, 2016, 7:30 PM
A Passion for Music from the Inside Out
James Buswell
FRIDAY, JULY 29, 2016, 7:30 PM
Beethoven: String Quartet Op. 132
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 2016, 7:30 PM
Beyond the 3 B's: Broadening Your Chamber Music Repertoire
James Wilson
This seminar was made possible by the generous support of the Barbara and Jerry Hulka Fund.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 2016, 7:30 PM
The (Cine)shape of Contemporary Chamber Music: A Conversation with Amy Williams
Frank Daykin
2015 Seminars
THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2015, 7:30 PM
Lonely Prince of a Realm of Spirits
:
An exploration of Beethoven's String Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 127
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, AUGUST 6, 2015, 7:30 PM
César Franck's Second Act: A Preview of the Piano Quintet
Phillip Bush, Music Director, Bennington Chamber Music Conference
This seminar was made possible by the generous support of the Barbara and Jerry Hulka Fund.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 2015, 7:30 PM
Movie Night:
The Rolston Sessions: The Candidates of the 2013 Banff International String Quartet Competition
Riddle Films, 2013; Liam Romalis & Jason Charters, directors; 75 minutes
Filmed in the beautiful Rolston Recital Hall of the Banff Centre, a great Canadian institution dedicated to arts, culture and education, The Rolston Sessions goes backstage at the 2013 Banff International String Quartet Competition. Breathtaking performances and intimate interviews with ten of the best emerging quartets from all over the world.
2014 Seminars
THURSDAY, JULY 31, 2014
The Op. 130, Op. 131, and Op. 132 Late Quartets by Beethoven — Plus the Grosse Fuge
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
FRIDAY, AUGUST 1, 2014
Dual Narrative: Music and Photography
George Enescu's Impressions d'enfance presented with 26 images by Peter Laytin
Co-presentation with Art New England
Shem Guibbory, violin
Phillip Bush, piano
THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 2014
Movie Night:
Delmar, a film by Matthew Dine
Speak the Music: Robert Mann and the Mysteries of Chamber Music, a film by Allan Miller
THURSDAY, AUGUST 14, 2014
Fish Tales, or The One That Didn't Get Away: A Schubert Exploration
Frank Daykin, pianist/musicologist
Susanna Eyton-Jones, soprano
2013 Seminars
WEDNESDAY, JULY 31, 2013
The Sublime in Beethoven: Slow Movements in the Quartets and the Hammerklavier
Sonata
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
Phillip Bush, piano
THURSDAY, AUGUST 1, 2013
Brahms in the Home: Domestic Music-Making in the Late 19th-Century
Styra Avins, musicologist
Talk followed with open readings by participants of works by Walter Rabl and Robert Kahn and Theodor Kirchner's arrangement for piano trio of Brahms's Sextet, Op. 36.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2013
Beethoven's Diabelli
Variations
Stephen Manes, piano
Brief talk about this landmark of Beethoven's late period, the keyboard corollary to the late quartets, followed by a complete performance.
This presentation is made possible by the generous support of Jerry and Barbara Hulka.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 15, 2013
Movie Night: A Time There Was
Screening of Tony Palmer's acclaimed 1980 documentary about composer Benjamin Britten, exploring his life and works by combining interviews, rehearsal footage, and fully-staged scenes from operas such as Peter Grimes. Presented as part of the Conference's season-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Britten's birth.
2012 Seminars
WEDNESDAY, JULY 25, 2012
A Closer Look At Bartók's Fourth String Quartet
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, JULY 26, 2012
Einstein on the Road
Albert Einstein's travels 1922-33 and the role of music in his life
Dr. Josef Eisinger, Professor Emeritus, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, and author, Einstein on the Road
THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 2012
Pierrot Lunaire and The Rite of Spring at 100
Schoenberg and Stravinsky's legacy through the twentieth century and beyond
Dr. Elizabeth Seitz, Professor of Music History, Boston Conservatory
This lecture is made possible by the generous support of Jerry and Barbara Hulka.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 9, 2012
Antonín and Johannes: Influence Without Anxiety
Examining complex connections between the music of Dvořák and Brahms
Frank Daykin, pianist/musicologist
2011 Seminars
WEDNESDAY, JULY 27, 2011
A Closer Look at Bartók's Second String Quartet
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, JULY 28, 2011
Building an Opera From the Ground Up
A look into the process of transforming an idea into a 21st-century multidisciplinary chamber opera
Donald Crockett, CMC Senior Composer-in-Residence
Kate Vincent, Firebird Ensemble (Producer)
THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 2011
Vocal Chamber Music
An overview from Schubert to Shostakovich
Dr. Lynn Kompass, University of South Carolina
This lecture is made possible by the generous support of Jerry and Barbara Hulka.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 2011
Cueing and Body Language in Chamber Music
A Workshop for All Instruments
Jacqueline Leclair and Daniel Grabois (with assisting CMC faculty)
2010 Seminar Series
WEDNESDAY, JULY 28, 2010
A Closer Look at Bartók's Third String Quartet
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2010
Schumann the Critic: The Music That Mattered
Phillip Bush, Music Director, Chamber Music Conference
THURSDAY, AUGUST 5, 2010
Inside The Letter
: The New Opera by Paul Moravec
Paul Moravec, Composer-in-Residence
THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 2010
Much Madness Is ...
(Re-imaging Schumann)
Frank Daykin, pianist/musicologist
2009 Seminar Series
WEDNESDAY, JULY 29, 2009
Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert: Where Influence Meets Inspiration
Lecture-Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, July 30, 2009
Changing Clothes: How Composers Dress Their Music
Styra Avins, musicologist/cellist
THURSDAY, AUGUST 6, 2009
Good Music for a Free People: Concert Life in 19th-Century America
Dr. Nancy Newman, Assistant Professor, University at Albany (SUNY)
This lecturer is made possible by the generous support of the Hulka family.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 2009
Do You Hear what I Hear?: Psychoacoustic Auditory Demonstrations
Fan Tao, Director of Research and Development, D'Addario Co., Inc.
2008 Seminar Series
THURSDAY, JULY 31, 2008
Beethoven's Quartet Op. 59, No. 2
A Lecture/Performance led by Joel Berman
THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 2008
Playing (Less) Hurt - An Injury Prevention Guide for Musicians
Janet Horvath, Associate Principal Cellist, Minnesota Orchestra
THURSDAY, AUGUST 14, 2008
Quartet for All Time: Messiaen at 100
Frank Daykin, musicologist
2007 Seminar Series
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2007
Bartók's Sixth String Quartet
A Lecture/Performance led by Joel Berman
Joel Berman, violin
Mayuki Fukuhara, violin
Alice Berman, viola
Steve Reid, cello
THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 2007
Johannes Kreisler:
How a Fictional Character Influenced Brahms, Schumann, and Other Composers
Styra Avins, musicologist/cellist
THURSDAY, AUGUST 9, 2007
Música Mestiza: One Composer's Perspective
Gabriela Lena Frank, composer/pianist
TUESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2007
Elgar: Beyond the Enigma
Exploration of Elgar's Piano Quintet, Violin Sonata, and String Quartet
Frank Daykin, musicologist
THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2007
The Omnivorous Musician: An Hour with Robert Dick
Robert Dick, composer/flutist
2006 Seminar Series
TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2006
Why Beethoven Wrote the Great Fugue:
The Mystery Unraveled
Joel Berman
THURSDAY, AUGUST 3, 2006
The Sound of Paintings in 20th Century Art
Lutz Rath
THURSDAY, AUGUST 10, 2006
Cultivating Artistry
John Steinmetz
THURSDAY, AUGUST 17, 2006
Frank Talk About Shostakovich:
The Secret Signs and The Impenetrable Wall
(Did Shostakovich write secret messages in his music?)
Musicologist Frank Daykin, Resident Composer Gabriela Lena Frank, and the Festival Faculty
2005 Seminar Series
THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 2005
And you thought Brahms was old-fashioned:
Schoenberg's view of Brahms
Musicologist/Cellist Styra Avins and the Conference Faculty
THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 2005
Eye-openers for the ear:
Schubert on paper vs. Schubert in sound
Musicologist David Montgomery
THURSDAY, AUGUST 18, 2005
And you thought you knew Beethoven
Musicologist/Pianist Frank Daykin
2004 Seminar Series
THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2004
Music is Alive, Well & All Over the Map!
John Steinmetz, Donald Crockett, and the Festival Faculty
THURSDAY, AUGUST 5, 2004
Inspiration, Text and Music – Part I
Stephen Hartke, Carol Meyer, and the Festival Faculty
THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 2004
Inspiration, Text and Music – Part II
Shem Guibbory, Cynthia Adler, Susanna Eyton-Jones, and the Festival Faculty
THURSDAY, AUGUST 19, 2004
The 4-Handed Musician
Abba Bogin and David Oei