PianoSonoma Music Festival Returns to Sonoma County

From pianoSonoma Music Festival:

Sonoma County, CA - Offering a unique experience for participants and audiences alike, the pianoSonoma Music Festival returns to Sonoma County’s Schroeder Hall at the Green Music Center in Rohnert Park, CA July 24-August 6, 2016. The festival brings together musicians from all walks of life to collaborate, perform, and deepen their artistry. This year’s Artists in Residence are all from New York City's The Juilliard School and will be complemented with adult musicians from California, New York and Alabama. Founded by the artistic team of Michael Shinn and Jessica Chow Shinn, pianoSonoma has become a spectacular summer festival with preeminent performers from New York City’s cultural scene.

“Michael and I met while at Juilliard, and after spending time in the beautiful wine regions of Sonoma and Napa Valley, we were inspired to create a summer music festival here,” said pianoSonoma Co-Artistic Director Jessica Chow Shinn. “The combination of wine and music is a natural fit, and the location is a beautiful one for musical stimulation. We are so excited to bring great musicians together for two weeks of masterclasses, workshops, and of course, performances. It’s a highlight for us every year.” 

“Our favorite part of this festival is helping to build relationships among the Artists and participants,” pianoSonoma Co-Artistic Director Michael Shinn added. “We carefully pair each participant and Artist in Residence as a chamber group, so to see these collaborations grow during the festival is very meaningful. These relationships continue to blossom even beyond pianoSonoma. It really is tremendous to see, and we know the audience experiences this as well.”

The festival’s2016 pianoSonoma Artists in Residence — superstar talents from The Juilliard School — are pianist Peter Dugan, flutist Emi Ferguson, violinist Julia Glenn, mezzo-soprano Kara Sainz, pianist Mika Sasaki and cellist Julian Schwarz. Throughout the Festival, the Artists in Residence will collaborate and mentor adult Festival participants. During the Vino & Vibrato concert series, the Artists will be featured in four evenings of public concerts which blend a wine tasting with a performance. Wine for the Vino & Vibrato wine tasting will be provided by WindRacer. 

Festival participants — adult musicians of varied backgrounds — will have the experience of working withthe Artists in Residence through rehearsals, masterclasses and private performances. This year’s participants include four musicians from California, 13 from New York and two from Alabama.

“Each year at pianoSonoma there are incredible participants,” flutist Emi Ferguson has said. “It’s this beautiful, symbiotic relationship where they have a passion for what we do, and we learn about their passions and what they do.”

See more here.

Image via Shutterstock.