After an almost two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 shutdown, the Mill Valley Chamber Music Society (MVCMS) returned in November for the 49th season of their annual Chamber Music Concert Series.
The organization, which aims to present world-renowned musicians in an intimate setting at an affordable ticket price, continues its season this month with a performance by Russian pianist Ilya Yakushev, who has garnered myriad awards and honors over the years. Yakushev continues to astound and mesmerize audiences at major venues on three continents, with the San Francisco Chronicle reporting that “…the big news was the astonishing tripartite debut of pianist Ilya Yakushev, who single-handedly turned the end of the festival into something unforgettable.”
Winner of the 2005 World Piano Competition in Cincinnati, Ohio, Yakushev received his first award at age 12 as a prizewinner of the Young Artists Concerto Competition in his native St. Petersburg. Yakushev attended the Rimsky-Korsakov College of Music in St. Petersburg, and later the Mannes College of Music in New York City. He has performed at some of the world’s most illustrious venues, including Glinka Philharmonic Hall in St. Petersburg, Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco, and Carnegie Hall in New York. Program: Franz Joseph Haydn – Sonata in D major: Hob: XVI/37; Ludwig van Beethoven – Sonata No 17, op. 31, no. 2 in d minor : “Tempest”; Alexandr Scriabin – Nocturne for the Left Hand, op 9,no 2; Sergei Prokofiev – Piano Sonata No, 7, op. 83.
The MVCMS series consists of five shows in a season spanning seven months, all at 5pm – and features local and internationally known classical musicians. Each group performs without a conductor, which longtime board member and classical music enthusiast Bill Horne says makes MVCMS different from other chamber music organizations.
“I think it’s exciting for musicians to play chamber music without a conductor because every musician can interpret the music differently and in their own unique way,” he says. “This shared experience with your fellow musicians is so important and when it all comes together it is simply incredible.”
GO HERE to buy tickets or email mvchambermusicsociety@gmail.com. NOTE: MVCMS policy requires ticketholders to wear masks during the entire concert and to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Patrons will be asked for proof of vaccination to enter the church. Unvaccinated adults and unvaccinated children 12 and under will not be admitted at this time. Visit the Covid updates page on the MVCMS website for full details.