WHAT IS CHAMBER MUSIC DAY . LIVE + FREE ?
The 2010 event will take place on all three stages of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music - beginning in the late morning, and ending in the early evening, a diverse array of ensembles will be presented by many of the Bay Area's most prominent presenting organizations.
The mission of Chamber Music Day is to enrich the Bay Area's cultural landscape, by offering musicians, presenters, and audiences the chance to enjoy a varied program of free events while meeting one another in a casual atmosphere. The music is presented in half-hour segments, and organized with the hope that the audience will move about between the three different stages, taking in a variety of styles and augmenting their experience by discovering unfamiliar repertoire, genres or ensembles.
The long-term goal for Chamber Music Day is to become an integral part of Chamber Music Bay Area (CMBA), a new networking initiative of SFFCM. The idea is to have an annual event, near the beginning of the season, in which presenters and musicians can showcase to a wide public. Offering more than just a day of free music, Chamber Music Day is also an opportunity to sell tickets for the upcoming season and invite people to learn more about the extraordinary range of available music around San Francisco.
Chamber Music Day is an opportunity for all involved: the audience as well as musicians and presenters. A California Arts Council survey found that the greatest deterrent for audiences in California to attending concerts is "being unaware of the event." Following closely behind this were the price of tickets and the accessibility of the venue. As an introduction to the chamber music season, Chamber Music Day is the perfect event - free to the public, and, in 2010, in the impressive new building of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Judging from the past three years of Chamber Music Day, the average audience member appreciated coming for one particular ensemble and discovering a number of other groups. Many people were listening to chamber music for the very first time, and found the event to be relaxed, welcoming and unpretentious. Everyone was appreciative of the opportunity to “taste” the Bay Area's diverse musical offerings, and come away with the information needed to be able to attend concerts in the future.
For local performers and presenters, Chamber Music Day has already engendered a real sense of goodwill and enthusiasm. As the event grow in stature, the rewards will be even greater - with presenters hearing many ensembles live, and musicians able to interact and get to know presenters better. One major attraction of the day-long opportunity to hear so many ensembles will be for the local grant-giving organizations. Instead of relying only on reviews and recordings, representatives from all the major funders will be able to both hear and meet the musicians in person.
Launched in 2007 in Berkeley, Chamber Music Day was inspired by a long history of similar events in other U.S. and European cities. In 1808, Beethoven presented “Die Akademie” running from 6:30 to 10:30 in two parts at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, Austria.
In 2010, SFFCM wants Chamber Music Day . Live + Free to represent the widest possible spectrum of music: classical music from the early baroque through to living composers; the latest in avant-garde music including improvisation; jazz and crossover-genres, and ensembles that feature music from different cultures.
Some other similar events:
Outsound New Music Summit (launched in 2001)
Switchboard Music Festival (launched in 2008)
San Jose Jazz (launched in 2009)
Hot Air Music Festival (launched in 2010)
Fall Free For All (launched in 2010)
UitMarkt! (launched in 1977)
Fête de la Musique (launched in 1982)
Die Akademie 1808
