THE SUMMER
Each August Staunton Music Festival welcomes over 90 acclaimed professionals from around the world to perform in 30 events. Multiple concerts daily make for an exhilarating immersion in chamber, vocal, and symphonic music. The days are given over to one-hour, free admission programs, while the evenings come alive with longer, ticketed concerts preceded by special dinners and short lectures.
WHAT ABOUT SEASON PASSES? Summer Festival tickets can be purchased individually or as part of the discounted Summer Pass or Annual Pass. For details about seating sections and passes, visit Ticket Info.
Handel's Orlando
Friday August 11 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
The 2023 Festival opens with one of Handel's most spirited operas, Orlando. A staged production in Italian.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY DAVIDSON PERRY-MILLER AND JAMES & TAMARA RIDENOUR
Paris 1907: Proust at the Ritz
Saturday August 12 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
A Proust-centered program of chamber works by Fauré, Beethoven, Wagner, Chopin and others
Paris 1922: A Night at the Majestic
Saturday August 12 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
Program features new arrangement of Stravinsky's Petrushka, plus music by Barber, Ravel, Satie, and Berio
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
Summer Sounds
Sunday August 13 at 10:30 am
Blackfriars Playhouse | $16-$20
Works by 2023 composer-in-residence Anders Hillborg, as well as Richard Strauss and Paganini
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
La Bella Italia
Sunday August 13 at 4:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
Afternoon concert celebrates three centuries of Italian works by Rossini, Banchieri, Ferrandini, and others
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
Collegium Musicum
Monday August 14 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
A one-hour free concert of chamber works by Bach, Telemann, and Hindemith
BAROCOCO
Monday August 14 at 7:30 pm
Blackfriars Playhouse | $16-$22
Happenstance Theater presents a witty jab at 18th-century high society, filled with physical comedy and timely satire.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
Nordic Light & Darkness
Tuesday August 15 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
Composers from Scandanavia light up this one-hour noon concert. Works by Sibelius, Hillborg, Grieg, and Sinding
Early Keyboard Extravaganza
Tuesday August 15 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
Enjoy works by Bach, Beethoven, D'Anglebert, Schubert, Handel, and Buxtehude, all performed on historic keyboards.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY TERRY E GRANT
Nightcap: from Camerata to Broadway
Tuesday August 15 at 10:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $20
Relax with a drink and a short concert of vocal music ranging from madrigals to showtunes.
Serenades at Noon
Wednesday August 16 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
US premiere of Rosita Piritore's String Quartet, plus chamber music by Debussy and Scarlatti
Meet the Composer: Anders Hillborg
Wednesday August 16 at 3:00 pm
Central United Methodist Church | Free admission
Meet Anders Hillborg, one of the most acclaimed Swedish composers noted for his "alluring soundscapes".
The Breathing of the World
Wednesday August 16 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
Beethoven's Symphony No. 4 concludes a mixed program, featuring works by Anders Hillborg, Milhaud, and others
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
Song Fest
Thursday August 17 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
Virginia composer Judith Shatin presents recent music, paired with Britten folksongs and a Bach cantata
The Great Elopement
Thursday August 17 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
Program features a rarely-heard gem by Handel/Beecham, as well as music by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Hillborg, and others
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY ELIZABETH DELZELL AND ANNE & JOHN SILLS
Bach Materia
Friday August 18 at 12:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | Free admission
A one-hour noon recital of works by J.S. Bach and composer-in-residence Anders Hillborg
Baroque Inside-Out: The Brandenburgs
Friday August 18 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
All-Bach program features period-instrument performances of four Brandenburg Concertos and two vocal motets
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY CHRISTINE & MICHAEL BURCH, RICK CHITTUM, AND BILL & LISA MOORE
Nightcap: Baroque Bash
Friday August 18 at 10:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $20
The Baroque immersion rolls on with a short concert of instrumental treasures, with complimentary drinks.
Fin de Siècle
Saturday August 19 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
This free one-hour concert features Ravel's Introduction & Allegro and Enescu's Octet for Strings
Baroque Lovers' Afternoon
Saturday August 19 at 3:00 pm
Central United Methodist Church | Free admission
Lovers of the Baroque, take note! Spend a delightful hour with music by J. S. Bach, John Blow and a French cantata.
SPONSORED BY BOB BARRON & FRED BLANTON
España
Saturday August 19 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
De Falla and Happenstance Theater present Master Peter's Puppet Show, plus music by Albéniz, Boccherini, and others
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
Mozart's Math and Magic
Sunday August 20 at 10:30 am
Blackfriars Playhouse | $16-$22
Program offers new composition by Zachary Wadsworth alongside chamber music by Mozart
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
Finale: Mozart Extravaganza
Sunday August 20 at 4:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$35
All-Mozart program concludes the summer festival, touching on both familiar (Symphony No. 40 in G Minor) and unfamiliar works
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.