Five Outstanding Conductors in BFM Debuts
Inspiring Guest Soloists
Fresh Repertoire, Time Honored and Emerging
The Bellingham Festival of Music is delighted to announce five outstanding guest conductors who will make their BFM debuts during our 30th year, July 1—18, 2023. This Season of Discovery will showcase a fascinating variety of interpretive styles, wide-ranging repertoire, and stimulating new soloists. And, one of the conductors may emerge as the Festival’s new Artistic Director.
Coming from orchestra positions in both the U.S. and abroad, the guest conductors and some career highlights are:
Ward Stare (July 1)
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- Music Director, Rochester Philharmonic, 2014-2021
- Guest conductor Berlin, Atlanta and Baltimore Symphonies, Chicago Lyric Opera, Metropolitan Opera
- Resident conductor St. Louis Symphony 2008-2019
Marcelo Lehninger (July 6)
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- Music Director, Grand Rapids Symphony, 2016–present
- Associate Conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra
- Guest conductor Chicago, Detroit and St. Louis Symphonies
Ken Lam (July 10)
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- Orchestra conductor and professor of conducting at Tianjin-Juilliard Music School
- Music Director of Charleston Symphony (2015-2022)
- Illinois Symphony, Music Director (2017-2022) and currently Artistic Advisor
Joshua Weilerstein (July 14)
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- Artistic Director, Chamber Orchestra of Lausanne (2017-2021)
- Guest appearances New York, Seattle (2022), Philadelphia and San Francisco Symphonies
- Host, Sticky Notes podcast, (2017 to present) with 3M downloads
Conner Gray Covington (July 18)
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- Associate Conductor of the Utah Symphony, 2018-2022
- Music Director of the Deer Valley Music Festival, 2019-2020
Additional information on the conductors and photos are available online here.
Guest artists are Andriana Chuchman, soprano; Blake Pouliot, violin; Conrad Tao, piano; Alexi Kenney, violin; and Michelle Cann, piano. Bios and photos of the soloists are available here.
In addition to the five orchestral concerts, BFM will also present its resident chamber ensemble, the Calidore String Quartet (July 12) and the popular Chamber Music by the Bay concert and reception (July 16) featuring principal players of the orchestra.
All orchestral concerts and the Calidore Quartet recital will take place in the Performing Arts Center of Western Washington University. Chamber Music by the Bay will take place in the picturesque rotunda of the Bellingham Cruise Terminal.
Tickets for the season will be available online and through the WWU Box Office beginning in February 2023.
The 2023 programs follow:
July 1, 2023, 7:00 PM
Ward Stare conducting
Brahms: Variations on a Theme of Haydn
Samuel Barber, Knoxville Summer of 1915
Andriana Chuchman, soprano
Mahler, Symphony No. 4
Andriana Chuchman, soprano
July 6, 2023, 7:00 PM
Marcelo Lehninger conducting
Valentin Silvestrov, Hymne – 2001
Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35
Blake Pouliot, violin
Dvorak, Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88
July 10, 2023, 7:00 PM
Ken Lam conducting
Cindy McTee: Circuits
Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 2
Conrad Tao, piano
Shostakovich, Symphony No. 9
July 12, 2023, 7:00 PM
The Calidore String Quartet
Program TBA
July 14, 2023, 7:00 PM
Joshua Weilerstein conducting
Gideon Klein, Partita for String Orchestra
Samuel Barber, Violin Concerto, Op. 14
Alexi Kenney, violin
Beethoven, Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major
July 16, 2023, 4:00 PM
Chamber Music by the Bay
Bellingham Cruise Terminal
Concert and reception
Program to be announced from the stage
July 18, 2023, 7:00 PM
Conner Gray Covington conducting
Anna Clyne, This Midnight Hour
Florence Price, Piano Concerto in One Movement
Michelle Cann, piano
Mendelssohn, Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Ravel, Mother Goose (complete ballet)
