Violinist Andrey Baranov at the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival 2024 (photo: Tiffany Schultz)
The 20th Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival kicks off this coming week from 4 to 13 July at the US Konservatorium in Stellenbosch.
Some of the SICMF artists are already in the country, notably Andrey Baranov, who has been showcasing his sublime artistry on concert stages around South Africa since the beginning of the month. Other much loved festival artists include violinist Daniel Rowland, known for his magical colours on the violin, cellists Maja Bogdanović and David Cohen, both known for their flair and charisma, oboist Dwight Parry, known for his beautiful, sweet sound, clarinetist YaoGuang Zhai, known for his effortless wizardry and pianist Emanuil Ivanov, winner of the first prize at the 2019 Ferruccio Busoni Piano Competition in Itay, to name but a few.
Jose Garcia Gutierrez (photo: provided)
New artists not to be missed include Bram van Sambeek, a highly versatile bassoonist and the only bassoonist to win the highest Dutch Cultural Award: The Dutch Music Prize, and Spanish horn player José Garcia Gutìérrez, who enjoys engagements as a soloist and principal horn player with orchestras all around the world. Also on the faculty for the first time are two South Africans based abroad. Ian Watson is a violinist based in the UK who is in demand as an orchestral leader and chamber musician, and pianist Leo Gevisser, a graduate of the Julliard School in NYC who has just been named a Steinway Artist.
Ian Watson (photo: Mark Savage)
This year’s SICMF will be preceded by special alumni orchestral concert on Thursday 3 July in the Endler Hall. An alumni symphony orchestra made up of festival participants from 2004 has been constituted for this once off performance of a new overture by Matthijs van Dijk, Gershwin’s piano concerto in F (soloist: Leo Gevisser) and Mahler’s awesome fifth symphony, all performed under the baton of the young international award winning South African born conductor, Jacobus de Jager.
Peter Martens (photo: Jac de Jager)
Festival director Peter Martens says “this year’s eclectic programme has something for everyone. Those with conservative tastes should not shy away from names they do not know. Olli Mustonen’s music is so beautiful. His sound world is ethereal, and the music is poignant. Connesson is high Romanticism at its best and Nino Rota writes some of the best film music out there. The South African born Shane Woodborne is clearly influenced by Shostakovich amongst others and Edouard Dupuy, although unknown to most, is not at all modern – he was born in the same year as Beethoven!”
Lovers of jazz will also have a lot to enjoy with composers like Kapustin and Artie Shaw on the bill. This year’s commissioned work, inspired by the legacy of Steve Biko, is written by the Boston based internationally acclaimed jazz pianist, Kevin Harris. Harris will not only be joined on stage by drummer Lumanyano Bizana, bassist, Steven de Souza and spoken word artist, Namisa Mdlalose, but an entire orchestra comprising the all-star festival faculty.
Tickets for the SICMF concerts that run from 4 to 13 July in the Endler Hall are available from Webtickets. More information at www.sicmf.co.za.