From June 6-25, 2022, the Sarasota Music Festival (SMF) will transform this vibrant city into the epicenter of the chamber music world. Internationally-renowned classical musicians and the next generation of virtuosos come together at Holley Hall and the Sarasota Opera House for one of the nation’s premier performance and teaching festivals. The magical combination of youthful promise and acclaimed talent is a recipe for breathtaking concert experiences, with programs ranging from the Baroque to the 21^st century. With four different series packed into three weeks, SMF is a concert-lover’s dream destination. Read on to learn more about each concert series in SMF’s musical cornucopia. 

Artist Showcases

June 9, 16, and 23 at 4:30 pm
Holley Hall

SMF’s star-studded faculty roster includes principals of the nation's top orchestras, celebrated recitalists, and world-class educators from the finest conservatories and music schools. On Thursdays, SMF spotlights these artists’ brilliant musicianship as they perform together in a dynamic, small-ensemble format. A total of 12 new faculty will join the SMF community for the first time this June, while others have been coming to share their musical gifts with Festival fellows and audiences for decades.

Concert Highlight: Artist Showcase 3: Triumphs (June 23)
For an exquisite program opener, Demarre McGill, principal flutist of the Seattle Symphony, will perform one of the most popular works in the flute repertoire: Francis Poulenc’s Sonata for Flute and Piano. As one of this year’s new faculty artists, McGill carries a special connection to SMF as one of several faculty-alumni who came to study at SMF in the outset of their stellar careers. 

Festival Fridays
June 10, 17, and 24 at 7:30 pm
Sarasota Opera House

Festival Saturdays
June 11, 18, and 25 at 7:30 pm
Sarasota Opera House

Throughout SMF’s history, a mutual exchange of knowledge and inspiration has benefited the faculty and fellows in equal measure. On Friday and Saturday evenings, Festival fellows and faculty pop the cork on a week of intense collaboration and share the splendid results with SMF audiences. These concerts offer the best opportunity to hear the faculty and fellows unite in the full, lush sounds of a chamber orchestra.  

Concert Highlight: Festival Friday 1: Reunion (June 10)
Aptly titled “Reunion,” this concert brings the faculty and fellows together onstage again after two summers in hiatus. Among the listening treats in this celebration, you’ll hear one of the Baroque era’s “greatest hits” in J. S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, in which every member of the ensemble gets a chance to shine as a soloist.

Rising Stars
Sunday, June 12 and 19 at 2:30 pm
Friday, June 24 at 2:30 pm
Holley Hall

Each week of SMF, the fellows form ensembles of their new Festival friends to select and study single movements of great chamber works. Each concert features up to nine ensembles, creating a kaleidoscopic concert experience in which the fellows get all the glory, and audiences get to glimpse the bright future of the chamber music art form.

Concert Highlight: Every Rising Stars concert offers such an impressive musical smorgasbord, it’s impossible to highlight just one. With tickets starting at $15, audiences are encouraged to try them all for an epic chamber music immersion!   

To learn more and purchase tickets to the Sarasota Music Festival’s concerts and special events, visit the SMF website or call the Box Office at 941-953-3434. All programs and featured artists are subject to change.