International Chamber Music Festival 2010

Martin Fröst and Christian Ihle Hadland will uphold the traditional superior quality of ICMF, the international chamber music festival in Stavanger. But the Swedish clarinettist and the Norwegian pianist are seeking new venues and concert forms in addition to the established ones, in order to broaden the festival and spread its appeal even wider. This year's ICMF, August 9-15, will be their debut as artistic managers.

Martin Fröst headed the winter festival in Mora, Sweden, this year for the fourth time. There, as in Stavanger, top international names take part. Among the ICMF names this year are the pianists Leif Ove Andsnes, Kathryn Stott and Shai Wosner, the violinist Christian Tetzlaff, the viola player Tabea Zimmermann, the cellists Clemens Hagen, Torleif Thedéen and Pieter Wispelwey, and the trumpet player Tine Thing Helseth in addition to the hosts and many other artists. This will be the 20th ICMF. The festival was founded by the cellist Truls Mørk, who remained artistic leader for 13 years. Right from the start, the idea was to create the festival that the musicians wanted to come to: here they stay together, share meals and make music throughout the festival whenever possible. The formula proved highly successful: from the very early years, participants declared this one of the very best festivals of its kind, in the whole world. The major venues, Stavanger's Norman-Gothic cathedral and the Utstein monastery on a small island, are remarkably beautiful and blessed with marvellous accoustics. Stavanger is Norway's offshore capital. And one possibility for a truly different venue this year is a tall, sloping concrete platform leg, a reminder of all the huge platforms that have been constructed by and in our fjord. An experienced corps of around 100 volunteers handle all practical matters. And audiences impress the musicians: experiencing so much music of such brilliant quality over the years, listeners have become very discerning and appreciative. Time:
09.08.2010 - 15.08.2010

Location:
Stavanger, Rogaland

Organizer:
International Chamber Music Festival