For those unfamiliar with the Chamber Music Festival, the concept is to bring chamber music into intimate and historic settings on Amelia Island, bringing the music to the people -– those who may normally not attend the symphony. For example, visit Florida's oldest saloon for "Beer & G Strings" concerts at the historic Palace Saloon on June 4th or June 12, 2008 at 8 p.m. (tickets are $40).
Entering its seventh season, the nationally renowned Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival is dedicated to bringing classical music at the highest level to the general public, schools, and senior centers of Amelia Island and surrounding communities of northeastern Florida.
The organizers have created this wonderful 2-week event, from May 30 to June 15, 2008, with a diversified schedule of concerts around the island, and this year, some concerts in Jacksonville, too.
Internationally acclaimed violinist Robert McDuffie will kick off the 2008 season of the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival May 30, and a grand gala featuring the renowned American String Quartet will bring the Festival to a resounding conclusion on June 15 at the Ritz-Carlton on Amelia Island. In between, area residents and visitors will delight to the music of such Amelia Island favorites as cellist Lynn Harrell, pianist Valentina Lisista, and violinist Jennifer Koh.
“Chamber music by the sea. What better image to embody our Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival than a fiddler crab? " Says Christopher Rex, the founder of the festival and its artistic director.
Niccolo Crabanini (see picture) is a painting by Christopher Rex.
Chamber Music tickets go on sale April 15, can be purchased via credit card online at the Festival's website (see more further below in this article).
I had the privilege of attending a festival concert at historic Fort Clinch a few years ago. Even though it was a hot, steamy Florida evening (and a venue without air conditioning), it was absolutely marvelous -- a memorable evening that won’t be forgotten.
MORE ABOUT CHAMBER MUSIC
Christopher Rex, the founder of the festival and its artistic director, came up with the innovative idea to hold intimate concerts at historic venues around Fernandina Beach. His desire, reportedly, was to attract people who normally would have less interest in attending a formal concert setting. This is the idea behind holding concerts at local churches, the historic Palace Saloon and Victorian-era courthouse on historic Centre Street, (previously at Fort Clinch), senior centers, and offering free concerts as well, such as the Central Park concert, off Atlantic Avenue in Fernandina Beach. In 2008, the main free concert to be held at Central Park in Fernandina Beach, is scheduled for Sunday, June 1, 2008. The free concert in the park starting at 2:30 p.m. features the Atlanta Woodwind Quintet in a program of American music.
The intimate settings really do add much to the experience. I recall well the concert at Fort Clinch. The interior walls of the barracks were brick, and the music seemed to rise upward toward the wooden rafters overhead. Inside the barracks, dimly lit by kerosene lanterns, we sat on wooden benches. Supplied with paper fans to ward off the heat, the room was aflutter. Both the setting and the music helped to transport the audience back to another time in American history -- the Civil War era. It was one enchanting evening on Amelia Island!
More About the 2008 Chamber Music Festival…
Christopher Rex said, "This promises to be our finest season yet. The musical stars at our upcoming festival also include acknowledged masters like violinist Rachel Barton Pine and piano virtuosos Claude Frank and Andreas Haefliger. The 2008 Festival also will mark one of the last times you will be able to hear the Guarneri String Quartet, one of the world's greatest chamber ensembles that will retire after the 2008-2009 season. These and other world-class musicians will perform American, Russian, German, Czech and French music in a wide range of styles, from Classical, Romantic and Modern to light and just plain fun."
He added, "Our line-up of musical greats clearly demonstrates that music lovers need not travel to Europe, New York, Chicago or Los Angeles to hear classical music at the very highest level. All of this wonderful music can be enjoyed here on Amelia Island at a variety of beautiful and intimate settings, including churches, the historic Nassau County Courthouse, the Amelia Island Plantation and the Ritz-Carlton. We have also scheduled a performance at historic St. Andrew's Church in downtown Jacksonville."
Ticket prices range from $5 to $50. A detailed program, biographies of featured artists, and online ticket purchasing are available by visiting the Festival's official website, www.aicmf.com, or by calling the Festival office at (904)261-1779.
Accolades to Christopher Rex, who hatched a brilliant idea, and helped to orchestrate an enchanting music festival. The festival volunteers also deserve applause, for helping to make this festival possible on Amelia Island.
WATCH VIDEO "A GLIMPSE OF AMELIA ISLAND"
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About the author -- W. B. Lawson has lived on Amelia Island fourteen years and writes tourism, lifestyle, and real estate articles.