Danish String Quartet: Listen Up!

The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival is pleased to present a special performance by the prestigious Danish String Quartet, “one of the best quartets before the public today” (The Washington Post). The in-demand GRAMMY®-nominated ensemble performs classical repertoire as well as sophisticated arrangements of traditional Nordic folk tunes, which they have explored for over a decade; they’ve released three albums of this work, the last two both chosen as one of the top classical albums of the year by NPR and The New York Times. The Boston Globe said, “Even by today’s high standards, [the Danish String Quartet] offers something very special.” These “excitingly aggressive rockers” (Los Angeles Times) with “rampaging energy” “seemed to sing, dance, strut, and glide their way through the music” (The New Yorker). In addition to Maurice Ravel’s String Quartet, the Danish String Quartet will perform original works based on Nordic folk music composed and arranged for them.

First Congregational Church of Wellfleet

Downtown with Imani Winds: Amplify

Celebrating nearly three decades of transformative music-making, the GRAMMY®-winning and four-time nominated Imani Winds has led both a revolution and an evolution of the wind quintet. The first release from their Imani Winds Media, a record label spotlighting artists of color, Jeff Scott’s Passion for Bach and Coltrane won a GRAMMY® in 2024. They performed on the album with the Harlem Quartet, who will also appear at this year’s Festival. Imani Winds is known for their dynamic playing, adventurous programming, imaginative collaborations, and impactful outreach. They’ve appeared at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Banff Centre, and Chautauqua Institution, and toured internationally, inspiring audiences of all ages around the globe. Gramophone praised the ensemble’s “hot rapport [that] churns with conviction throughout.” Imani Winds will perform a wide range of exciting wind quintets from across the centuries, beginning with Felix Mendelssohn’s Scherzo from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. They’ll play Pacquito D’Rivera’s A Little Cuban Waltz, written for them and commissioned by the Imani Winds Foundation. The evening also includes Elliott Carter’s 1948 wind quintet, the late Lalo Schifrin’s La Nouvelle Orleans from 1987, and Shawn Okpebholo’s Rise, written in 2023. Imani Winds will make this fun summer evening sparkle. The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival will present this concert free to the community. All are welcome, and no tickets are required.

Federated Church of Hyannis

The Borromeo: Luminous Beauty

One of the most important ensembles of our time, the award-winning Borromeo String Quartet has been hailed for its “edge-of-the-seat performances” by The Boston Globe, which called it “simply the best.” A fan favorite and pillar of the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival for many years, the Borromeo is admired and sought after for both its fresh interpretations of the classical music canon and its championing of works by 20th and 21st century composers. The Chicago Tribune praised the Borromeo as “a remarkably accomplished string quartet, not simply for its high technical polish and refined tone, but more importantly for the searching musical insights it brings.” The San Diego Reader described the ensemble’s performance as “a musical experience of luminous beauty.” Performances in Hyannis and Wellfleet will feature Ludwig van Beethoven’s String Quartet in F Major, Op. 59, No. 1 and Antonín Dvořák’s String Quartet No. 14 in A-flat Major.

Harlem Quartet: Pushing Boundaries

Returning to the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival, the GRAMMY®-winning Harlem Quartet has earned acclaim for its dynamic performances and fresh approach to classical music. Originally founded in 2006 by the Sphinx Organization (and making its public debut that year at Carnegie Hall), the ensemble was conceived as an instrument to realize a much bigger goal: to diversify and create new audiences for classical music, as well as to commission and perform works written by contemporary composers. Their cross-pollination of classical, contemporary, jazz, and Latin-infused repertoire makes Harlem Quartet concerts appealing to a wide audience. Their work in bringing classical music to schools in Harlem and around the world is in line with the cultural renaissance Harlem represents for African-Americans. Harlem Quartet won a GRAMMY for their performance on&nbsp;Imani Wind’s album Jeff Scott’s Passion for Bach and Coltrane, and their most recent album, Havana Meets Harlem, was nominated for a Best Instrumental Album Latin GRAMMY. Harlem Quartet will perform Ludwig van Beethoven’s String Quartet in A Major, Op. 18, No. 5 and works by Guido López-Gavilán, William Bolcom, and Aldo López-Gavilán.

First Congregational Church of Chatham

Jazz at the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival: Steve Wilson, Renee Rosnes and David Wong

Jazz Times calls award-winning Steve Wilson “the consummate saxophonist-composer” and “one of the finest alto and soprano saxophonists of our time.” Steve was a member of Chick Corea’s GRAMMY®-winning sextet Origin, toured the U.S. and Europe with Lionel Hampton, and with the support of friend and mentor Dr. Billy Taylor, he has been a frequent guest performer/educator at The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Steve is a core member of the Maria Schneider Orchestra, an 18-member ensemble made up of many of the finest musicians in jazz today, and a regular member of the Billy Childs Quartet. Steve is consistently cited in the Downbeat Magazine Critics and Readers Polls as one the top players in the categories for soprano and alto saxophones as well as flute. He is the Director of Jazz Studies and an Associate Professor of Music at City College of New York. The Wall Street Journal called Steve “essential to [New York’s] jazz landscape.” Renee Rosnes’ distinguished career continues to reach new heights, marked by new music, compelling collaborations, and ever-evolving artistry. She was a ten-year member of the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band. Her ensemble, Artemis, was named Jazz Group of the Year for three consecutive years (2023-2025) in Downbeat’s Annual Readers Poll. Her most recent recording, Crossing Paths, spent six weeks at No. 1 on the JazzWeek National Radio charts and is nominated for a 2026 JUNO award for Jazz Album of the Year. She’s already won seven Juno awards! In 2018, the Montréal Jazz Festival honored Renee with the Oscar Peterson Prize in recognition of her exceptional contributions to jazz. She is married to and collaborates with Bill Charlap, also a world-renowned jazz pianist. The Jazz Report said, “Rosnes has grown and matured into one of the finest pianists in jazz. Her playing is inventive, complex and always illuminating.” A graduate of The Juilliard School, where he studied classical music, David Wong is a sought-after bass player. He has held the bass chair with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra for over 16 years, and is currently a member of the Bill Charlap Trio, Charles McPherson Quintet, and Terell Stafford Quintet. David was a member of Roy Haynes’ Fountain of Youth band for 15 years, of the Heath Brother’s Quartet, led by Jimmy Heath and Albert “Tootie” Heath, for 13 years, and of Hank Jones’ Great Jazz Trio and is featured on the piano master’s last recording. David has appeared on over 80 recordings, including Samara Joy’s GRAMMY-winning album, Linger a While. He is on faculty at Purchase College, William Patterson University, The New School, and The City College of New York. The Stanford Jazz Workshop said, “David’s mastery of the acoustic bass is remarkable” and cites his “wealth of experience he’s accumulated working with the world’s great jazz artists.” Selections to be announced from the stage.

Cotuit Center for the Arts

Alchemy: Classical Meets Jazz

The GRAMMY®-winning Harlem Quartet and outstanding jazz musicians Steve Wilson, Renee Rosnes, and David Wong will fuse classical and jazz forms in an evening that will include three world premieres. One is a new work commissioned for the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival and composed by Rosnes for jazz trio and classical string quartet. The Festival also commissioned two new arrangements for jazz trio and classical string quartet by GRAMMY-winning composer and orchestra leader Maria Schneider of her pieces Sky Blue and Walking by Flashlight. Harlem Quartet will perform Fanny Mendelssohn’s String Quartet in E-flat Major and Aldo López-Gavilán’s Frère Jacques. The Cincinnati Enquirer hailed the Harlem Quartet for “bringing a new attitude to classical music, one that is fresh, bracing and intelligent.” Jazz Times calls award-winning Steve Wilson “the consummate saxophonist-composer” and “one of the finest alto and soprano saxophonists of our time.” The Jazz Report said, “Rosnes has grown and matured into one of the finest pianists in jazz. Her playing is inventive, complex and always illuminating.” The Stanford Jazz Workshop said, “David’s mastery of the acoustic bass is remarkable” and cites his “wealth of experience he’s accumulated working with the world’s great jazz artists.” Together, these extraordinary musicians will create a special evening that combines classical and jazz into something altogether fresh, new, and exciting.

Falmouth Academy

Manasse/Nakamatsu Duo: Celebrate!

The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival celebrates 20 years since Jon Manasse and Jon Nakamatsu joined as Artistic Directors with this special performance. Clarinetist Manasse and pianist Nakamatsu tour as the Manasse/Nakamatsu Duo. Following their Boston debut in 2004, the Manasse/Nakamatsu Duo released its first CD for harmonia mundi usa, Brahms: Clarinet Sonatas Op. 120 Nos. 1 &amp; 2, which received the highest praise from The New York Times Classical Music Editor James Oestreich, naming it among the Best of the Year for 2008. One of today’s most distinguished classical artists, clarinetist Jon Manasse is internationally recognized for his inspiring artistry, uniquely glorious sound, and charismatic performing style. He’s on the faculty of The Juilliard School and principal clarinetist of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the American Ballet Theatre Orchestra, and the Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center. Jon Nakamatsu won the prestigious Gold Medal at the 1997 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. He performs with leading conductors and orchestras and appears in recital and chamber collaborations worldwide. Jon is a visiting artist faculty member at Stanford University and a faculty member of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and was a judge for the 2025 Van Cliburn Competition. The Manasse/Nakamatsu Duo’s performance will feature a wide variety of works by Leonard Bernstein, Felix Mendelssohn, Lowell Liebermann, and Gordon Goodwin. In honor of their anniversary, Jon and Jon will also present three previous Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival commissions by Pacquito D’Rivera, Vivian Fung, and John Novacek.

Renaissance String Quartet: Artistic Explosion

The exciting young Renaissance String Quartet make their debut with the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival. Founded in 2021 by violinists Randall Goosby and Jeremiah Blacklow, violist Jameel Martin, and cellist Daniel Hass, the New York City-based quartet was formed on the basis of over a decade of friendship at The Perlman Music Program and The Juilliard School. The Renaissance String Quartet is driven by a desire to reimagine the role and capacity of the string quartet as a vehicle for change, inspiring audiences, students, and collaborators around the world. They received a 2024 career grant from Salon de Virtuosi and were featured on WQXR, New York City’s premier classical music radio station. Violinist Randall Goosby, winner of the Sphinx’s Isaac Stern Award, released his debut album for Decca entitled Roots, a celebration of African-American music which explores its evolution from the spiritual through to present-day compositions. Violinist Jeremiah Blacklow debuted in Carnegie’s Weill Hall at the age of eight: today, he’s the Principal Second Violin of the Glimmerglass Opera Festival and a featured artist of The Omega Ensemble. Jameel Martin is an accomplished violist and writer, poet, and librettist who worked with cellist/composer Daniel Hass to transform his stage play, “Ransom Place,” into an opera. The Renaissance String Quartet premiered Daniel’s first string quartet, “Love and Levity,” at their debut New York recital in 2023, and his arrangements of “Satisfy My Soul” by Bob Marley and “Many Rivers to Cross” by Jimmy Cliff during their recital in Kingston, Jamaica which benefited Jamaica Red Cross and the Immaculate Conception High School Orchestra. This incredibly creative and talented ensemble will perform String Quartet No. 2 in A minor by Florence Price, Adagio and Fugue in C minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and String Quartet No. 1 in A minor by Béla Bartók.

Festival Finale!

Jon Manasse, clarinet, and Jon Nakamatsu, piano will close out the 2026 Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival with three outstanding young musicians from the Renaissance String Quartet: Jeremiah Blacklow, violin, Jameel Martin, viola, and Daniel Hass, cello. Jon and Jon are two distinguished chamber musicians, Co-Artistic Directors of the Festival, and the heart and soul of the summer season. Jeremiah, Jameel, and Daniel are three of tomorrow’s superstars with wide-ranging interests and a dedication to education and philanthropy; they’ve already had impressive achievements in their young careers. Together, these special talents will meet to present a beautiful evening of music. This concert will feature performances of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Trio in B-flat Major for Piano, Clarinet, and Cello, Op. 11; The Gork for Solo Piano by Elena Ruehr; and Gabriel Fauré’s Quartet No. 1 in C minor for Violin, Viola, Cello, and Piano, Op. 15. Boston and Wellfleet-based composer Elena Ruehr is a longtime festival supporter and her work has been performed widely on the Cape by the Cypress String Quartet and others.

Phenomenon: Two Manasses, One Nakamatsu & More

The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival is on from July 29 to August 22, 2025. Talented artists join Manasse and Nakamatsu – including Jon’s son Alec Manasse. Clarinetists Jon and Alec will join the string players to perform Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor – even though the modern clarinet had not been invented in Bach’s time! Award-winning Israeli violinist Kobi Malkin was praised by the New York Times for his “aptly traversed palette of emotions, from languid introspection to fevered intensity with gorgeous tone and an edge-of-seat intensity.” Grace Park is an internationally acclaimed violinist who recently gave her debut recital at Carnegie Hall, praised by the San Francisco Chronicle as “fresh, different, and exhilarating.” Brook Speltz is the award-winning cellist of the internationally renowned Escher String Quartet and an artist of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center who also performs on extensive tours with the cello rock band Break of Reality. Danielle Farina, Principal Viola of the Cape Symphony, is a member of the Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center (formerly the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra) and the American Ballet Theater Orchestra, and performs locally with Giocosa Chamber Music, the Chatham Chorale, and Cosmos Sessions with Cape Symphony concertmaster Jae Cosmos Lee. Since completing his Master’s degree at The Juilliard School, clarinetist Alec Manasse has enjoyed a lively and varied professional life. Alec plays regularly with many of New York City’s top ensembles, including the Metropolitan Opera, the American Ballet Theater Orchestra, and the American Symphony Orchestra. He also frequently played in the Orchestra of&nbsp;Sweeney Todd&nbsp;on Broadway.

The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival is on from July 29 to August 22, 2025. Talented artists join Manasse and Nakamatsu – including Jon’s son Alec Manasse. Clarinetists Jon and Alec will join the string players to perform Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor – even though the modern clarinet had not been invented in Bach’s time! Award-winning Israeli violinist Kobi Malkin was praised by the New York Times for his “aptly traversed palette of emotions, from languid introspection to fevered intensity with gorgeous tone and an edge-of-seat intensity.” Grace Park is an internationally acclaimed violinist who recently gave her debut recital at Carnegie Hall, praised by the San Francisco Chronicle as “fresh, different, and exhilarating.” Brook Speltz is the award-winning cellist of the internationally renowned Escher String Quartet and an artist of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center who also performs on extensive tours with the cello rock band Break of Reality. Danielle Farina, Principal Viola of the Cape Symphony, is a member of the Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center (formerly the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra) and the American Ballet Theater Orchestra, and performs locally with Giocosa Chamber Music, the Chatham Chorale, and Cosmos Sessions with Cape Symphony concertmaster Jae Cosmos Lee. Since completing his Master’s degree at The Juilliard School, clarinetist Alec Manasse has enjoyed a lively and varied professional life. Alec plays regularly with many of New York City’s top ensembles, including the Metropolitan Opera, the American Ballet Theater Orchestra, and the American Symphony Orchestra. He also frequently played in the Orchestra of Orchestra of&nbsp;Sweeney Todd&nbsp;on Broadway.

Agile Virtuosity: Parker Quartet

The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival is on from July 29 to August 22, 2025. The “fearless” GRAMMY® Award-winning Parker Quartet returns to the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival! The group are protegees of the Festival-favorite Borromeo Quartet. Founded and currently based in Boston (with their name inspired by the Parker House, a Boston historic landmark), the members of the Parker Quartet serve as Professors of the Practice and Blodgett Artists-in-Residence at&nbsp;<a href="https://music.fas.harvard.edu/">Harvard University’s Department of Music</a>. They are renowned for their fresh and unique approach to the great classics while being passionate ambassadors for music of our time. “A string quartet defined by virtuosity so agile that it’s indistinguishable from the process of emotional expression.” –&nbsp;&nbsp;Gramophone Magazine

Music for 6 and 7: Many Instruments, Extraordinary Sounds

The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival is on from July 29 to August 22, 2025. Our Artistic Directors Jon and Jon bring together several New York artists at the top of their game. Danielle Farina, principal viola of the Cape Symphony, performed at some of the world’s most prestigious venues, including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and the Library of Congress. Israeli-American cellist Inbal Segev played for the Israeli president at just eight years old, and came to international attention ten years later when she made her debuts with both the Berlin Philharmonic and Israel Philharmonic under the baton of Zubin Mehta. Pawel Knapik is a Polish-American bassist who performs regularly with preeminent New York City orchestras and has also worked with Paul McCartney, Bono and the Edge, Elvis Costello, Jennifer Hudson, Miley Cyrus, and Harry Connick, Jr. Kevin Newton is a GRAMMY®-winning horn player, a member of Imani Winds, and a performer in Broadway orchestras, and he was a featured artist at the 2024 International Horn Symposium. And Cynde Iverson is recognized as one of the finest bassoonists working today; she is Principal Bassoonist with the Stamford Symphony and New Haven Symphony and a member of the American Ballet Theater Orchestra. This all-star group performs two Festival favorites, one for six players and one for seven, which we will highlight for the first time in many years.

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Experiences

Danish String Quartet: Listen Up!

Downtown with Imani Winds: Amplify

The Borromeo: Luminous Beauty

The Borromeo: Luminous Beauty

Harlem Quartet: Pushing Boundaries

Jazz at the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival: Steve Wilson, Renee Rosnes and David Wong

Alchemy: Classical Meets Jazz

Alchemy: Classical Meets Jazz

Manasse/Nakamatsu Duo: Celebrate!

Renaissance String Quartet: Artistic Explosion

Festival Finale!

Phenomenon: Two Manasses, One Nakamatsu & More

Phenomenon: Two Manasses, One Nakamatsu & More

Agile Virtuosity: Parker Quartet

Music for 6 and 7: Many Instruments, Extraordinary Sounds