Chamber Music Society of St. Cloud

Musical Chairs 2025
2025-04-11 19:00 - 21:30 (America/Chicago) | St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1111 Cooper Avenue South, St. Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Friday, April 11, 2025, 7:00 p.m.
Join us for Musical Chairs! Our 30th annual fundraising party to benefit the Chamber Music Society features the Mill City String Quartet and soprano Stacey Mastrian. An intimate evening of chamber music performed by the MILL CITY STRING QUARTET and Stacey Mastrian  joined by prominent local musicians.
Desserts, wine, coffee & tea will be available! A silent auction of selected works by area artists as well as a multitude of other highly desirable items. Your support of this event helps bring top-quality live chamber music to Central Minnesota audiences. To purchase tickets:

Purchase/RSVP online: https://chambermusicstcloud.ticketspice.com/musical-chairs-2025
Call 320-292-4645
Send a check to the Chamber Music Society, PO Box 205, St. Cloud, MN 56302
Tickets will be available at the door the evening of the event

* Patrons at the $75 and $150 level will be acknowledged in the evening’s program with an RSVP by April 5.
THANK YOU!

Mill City String Quartet with Stacey Mastrian, soprano
2025-04-12 19:30 | St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1111 Cooper Avenue South, St. Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Come hear the 2024 Fanny Mendelssohn International Competition First Prize winning chamber music ensemble and “a sweet, shimmering soprano” (The Washington Post)

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Saturday, April 12, 2025 – 7:30 p.m.St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1111 Cooper Avenue South, St. CloudTickets online or at the door.  Adult $25 | Senior (65+) $20 | Student $5Concert sponsor: Julie Aronson Dehnel

Mill City String Quartet with soprano Stacey Mastrian concert closes our ’24-25 concert season with a delightful program of music for soprano and string quartet featuring works by Jesse Montgomery, Ottorino Respighi, Clara Wieck-Schumann, Caroline Shaw, Arthur Shepherd, and Carlos Simon.
Mill City String Quartet (MCSQ) is an internationally prize-winning chamber ensemble based in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. Recently, MCSQ achieved significant accolades, winning First Prize at the Fanny Mendelssohn International Competition in the Professional Chamber Music category (2024), Second Prize at the Charleston International Music Competition (Winter 2024), and Third Prize at the International Clara Schumann Competition (2023). This dynamic string quartet is dedicated to cultivating transformative concerts that not only promote underrepresented composers but also celebrate the classical music genre. Selected six times as Minnesota Public Radio Class Notes artists, MCSQ has introduced their music to thousands of school children through performances and master classes. Their recent engagements include performing the National Anthem for the Minnesota Twins at Target Field and concert performances in Iowa, Florida, and Oregon. The quartet has also held educational residencies with The Schubert Club and Oregon’s Britt Festival. MCSQ is committed to community outreach, having performed at Minnesota’s all-women’s correctional facility and The Glenn, a retirement community in Minnetonka. They frequently participate in regional chamber music series, showcasing their talent across various venues. Current members of MCSQ are Huldah Niles (Artistic Director and violin), Erika Hoogeveen (violin), Coca Bochonko (viola), and Rebeccah Parker Downs (cello). https://www.millcityquartet.com/
Stacey Mastrian is a Fulbright Grantee, Beebe Fellow, and Richard F. Gold Career Grant recipient.  Her repertoire extends from Hildegard von Bingen and Beatriz de Día to Machaut and Monteverdi, through Mozart and Verdi to the present, and she has sung in more than two dozen languages. In addition to standard classical repertoire, she specializes in art song, Italian vocal music, 20th- and 21st-century vocal works, and works that highlight social issues and innovation. Programming and performing thought-provoking repertoire spanning more than two dozen languages and 900 years, she endeavors to spark curiosity, deep empathetic responses, and reflection to shape our collective journey for the better. https://www.staceymastrian.com/

Ivalas Quartet
2025-10-10 19:30 | St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1111 Cooper Avenue South, St. Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Ivalas Quartet Buy single tickets, or buy season tickets now and save! Check Us Out!
Friday, October 10 – 7:30 p.m.St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1111 Cooper Avenue South, St. Cloud
Hailed by The Strad for playing with “tremendous heart and beauty,” the Ivalas Quartet has been changing the face of classical music since 2017 with a mission to enrich the classical music world by spotlighting past and present BIPOC composers alongside the standard repertory. They have championed the music of Eleanor Alberga, Gabriela Lena Frank, Osvaldo Golijov, Jessie Montgomery, Angélica Negrón, Iván Enrique Rodríguez, Alvin Singleton, and George Walker, and premiered Derrick Skye’s Deliverance through a commission from Caramoor and recorded Carlos Simon’s Warmth from Other Suns for Rising Sun Music. They are the 2024-2025 Curator/Ensemble of the Schneider Concerts at The New School. The Ivalas Quartet was the Graduate Resident String Quartet at The Juilliard School from 2022 to 2024, where they studied with the Juilliard String Quartet. They were previously in residence at the University of Colorado-Boulder under the mentorship of the Takács Quartet.
Concert sponsors:Julie Aronson DehnelBill and Chip Martin-Chaffee
Program:Haydn: String Quartet in F major, Op. 77, No. 2, Hob III: 81Derrick Skye: DeliveranceRavel: String Quartet in F major
Tickets online or at the door.  Adults $30 | Seniors (65+) $25 | Students $5Seating opens 30 minutes prior to the concert.
Can’t make their full-length evening concert?Come to their mini-concert at the Whitney Senior Center at 1 p.m. Friday, October 10!Click here for details and to purchase tickets.
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Project Grant from the Central Minnesota Arts Board thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

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Meet the Ivalas Quartet Members
Violinist Reuben Kebede has performed recitals across the U.S. and Europe. As first violinist of the Ivalas Quartet, he recently completed an Artist Diploma at The Juilliard School in the Graduate Resident String Quartet program. He also received an Artist Diploma in string quartet performance from CU Boulder under the tutelage of Edward Dusinberre, Harumi Rhodes, and the members of the Takács Quartet. Previously, he studied with Danielle Belen at the University of Michigan, where he served as concertmaster of both university orchestras, and with Sarah Plum at Drake University. In his free time Reuben loves reading, as well as watching and discussing soccer and films.
Violinist Tiani Butts is a passionate solo and chamber musician that strives to use the arts to encourage and inspire young students from all backgrounds. She has performed in numerous concert venues throughout the U.S. as well as internationally in Germany, Austria, Iceland, and Italy as a violinist in the Rome Chamber Music Festival. Tiani has been a solo fellow at the Aspen Music Festival, the Wintergreen Summer Music Academy, and the Philadelphia International Music Festival as well as a quartet fellow at the Colorado Music Festival, Music in the Vineyards, and the Madeline Island, Walla Walla, and Great Lakes chamber music festivals. In addition to a notable performance career, Tiani is dedicated to teaching and engaging with the community through the arts. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings, a dual master’s degree in violin performance and chamber music from the University of Michigan, and an artist diploma from The Juilliard School. Outside of her musical endeavors, you will find Tiani enjoying a good book, weightlifting, or relaxing in the park.
Violist Marcus Stevenson is an avid chamber musician and educator based in New York City. Originally from New Jersey, Marcus is an alumnus of The Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program and the Manhattan School of Music Precollege. In 2018, Marcus won the Rondo Young Artist Competition with the Neptune Piano Quartet, and the National League of Performing Arts Chamber Competition with the Milan String Quartet. Marcus was also previously a member of the Elless Quartet, who won Grand Prize in the 2020 Coltman Chamber Music Competition and was a finalist in the 2022 Chesapeake International Chamber Music Competition. Marcus has performed with renowned artists, including Margaret Batjer, Jaime Laredo, Philip Setzer, and Sharon Robinson. As an educator, Marcus has given masterclasses and coachings for numerous programs, including the Music Institute of Chicago, Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Civic Youth Ensemble Program, and Interlochen Arts Academy. Marcus holds a bachelor’s degree in viola performance and eurythmics pedagogy from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he studied with Jeffrey Irvine. He also holds a master’s degree in viola performance from The Juilliard School, where he studied with Heidi Castleman. While in Cleveland, he was the recipient of the inaugural Sidney D. and Nina Josephs Chamber Musician Award and the Darius Milhaud Award. While at Juilliard, Marcus was awarded the Joseph W. Polisi Prize and served as violist of the graduate string quartet in residence, studying with the Juilliard String Quartet. Currently based in Manhattan, Marcus teaches privately and serves as faculty for the Opportunity Music Project.
New York City based cellist Pedro Sánchez is originally from Caracas, Venezuela. His energetic style of playing was significantly shaped by his training with El Sistema and the Emil Friedman Conservatory in Caracas. In the United States, Pedro completed his high school education at Interlochen Arts Academy, followed by a bachelor’s degree from the Eastman School of Music. He furthered his studies with a master’s degree from the University of Michigan and earned artist diplomas from both CU Boulder and the Juilliard School. Pedro has performed solo recitals internationally, including in Africa, South America, and the United States. His playing has been deeply influenced by the teachings of cellists Alan Harris and Richard Aaron. During his time at the University of Michigan, he served as faculty for the university’s Artist Citizen program, which provides free music education to a diverse community of children in Ann Arbor. Pedro has coached chamber music at several prestigious institutions across the U.S., including Juilliard, Vanderbilt, and CU Boulder. Currently, Pedro is a teaching artist with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and serves as cello faculty at the Opportunity Music Project. He is dedicated to integrating social-emotional learning into his teaching approach, believing in the transformative power of music education to foster personal growth and resilience. His commitment to this philosophy stems from his experiences with El Sistema. Pedro plays a 2010 Marten Cornelissen Cello, generously loaned to him by the Maestro Foundation in California.

ProMusica Minnesota
2025-11-23 16:00 | Saint John’s University – Stephen B. Humphrey Theater, 2850 Abbey Plaza, Collegeville, MN, 56321
ProMusica Minnesota Presented with the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University
Sunday, November 23 – 4:00 p.m.St. John’s University – Stephen B. Humphrey Theater2850 Abbey Plaza, Collegeville
Pianist Bethel Balge, Artistic Director of ProMusica Minnesota, returns alongside Minnesota Orchestra musicians Susie Park, Sarah Grimes, Marlea Simpson, and Tony Ross for a program including Ravel’s Violin Sonata No. 2, a sparkling blend of lyricism and jazz, Boulanger’s Three Pieces for Cello and Piano, filled with beauty and depth, and Brahms’ powerful Piano Quintet in f minor, a tour de force of Romantic expression.
Concert sponsor: St. Cloud Camera and PhotoConcert co-sponsors: Mary Lou and Jerry Lenz
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Project Grant from the Central Minnesota Arts Board thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

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Woodwind Summit: an afternoon of duos, trios and quartets
2026-02-08 16:00 | Saint John’s University – Stephen B. Humphrey Theater, 2850 Abbey Plaza, Collegeville, MN, 56321
Sunday, February 8 – 4:00 p.m.St. John’s University – Stephen B. Humphrey Theater2850 Abbey Plaza, Collegeville
Presented with the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University
Enjoy a program of duos, trios, and quartets for woodwinds including the virtuosic, yet bubbly Jean Françaix quartet, the iconic duo for flute and bassoon by Heitor Villa-Lobos, the Divertimento trio by English composer, Malcolm Arnold, and the lyrical and romantic quartet by 19th-century composer, Karl Goepfart. Immanuel Davis, flute, Christine Soojin Kim, oboe, Sangyoon Kim, clarinet, and Fei Xie, bassoon, come together for a memorable afternoon of chamber music.
Concert sponsors:Jennifer Galovich & Tom SibleyLois Head in memory of her son Karsten Eric Braaten

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Isidore String Quartet
2026-04-11 19:30 | St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1111 Cooper Avenue South, St. Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Isidore String Quartet
Saturday, April 11 – 7:30 p.m.St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1111 Cooper Avenue South, St. Cloud
Winners of a 2023 Avery Fisher Career Grant, and the 14th Banff International String Quartet Competition in 2022, the New York City-based Isidore String Quartet was formed in 2019 with a vision to revisit, rediscover, and reinvigorate the repertory. The quartet is heavily influenced by the Juilliard String Quartet and the idea of ‘approaching the established as if it were brand new, and the new as if it were firmly established.’ They’ll also be the featured guests at our Musical Chairs fundraiser on Friday, April 10.
Concert sponsors:Keith and Molly Ewing in memory of Rob LavendaDale, Carol, and Maryne Mossey
Program: ProximitiesLigeti: Quartet No. 2T. Sorey: Everything Changes, Nothing Changes (2018)Schubert: Quartet in A minor, D. 804, Op. 29 “Rosamunde”
From Gyorgy Ligeti’s mastery of micropolyphony to Schubert’s yearning lyricism, this program offers no shortage of aesthetic and stylistic differences, yet each piece retains a central dilemma: a struggle between unification and divergence. Tyshawn Sorey’s Everything Changes, Nothing Changes is the perfect microcosm of this dialectic, which reflects the inherent darkness present throughout the evening’s works and demands a close examination of a quartet’s proximities, both to itself and to an audience.

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