32nd Season Marks Lehninger’s 2nd Year as Artistic Director of the Festival
Guest Artists Simon Trpceski, Pianist; Sterling Elliott, Cellist; and Simone Porter, Violinist Make Their Festival Debuts
Calidore String Quartet Plays Barber, Marsalis, a premiere of John Williams’ “With Malice Toward None,” and Korngold Quartet No. 3 in Annual Recital
Michael Palmer Leads Program featuring BFM Principals Christina Smith, Sophie Baird-Daniel.
Tickets go on sale March 3, 2025
Bellingham, WA—For its 32nd season, the Bellingham Festival of Music will transport listeners to musically picturesque destinations around the globe,
June 29—July 20, 2025. Tour guide, Marcelo Lehninger, leading his second full season as Artistic Director, has assembled a sonic itinerary from the rugged Hebrides to London’s urban soundscape, from Catfish Row to New York, from Paris to Sicily, and from Russia to Vienna. Complete programs and performers were announced October 4 at the BFM’s Annual General Meeting.
The Festival Orchestra will present five concerts and the Calidore String Quartet, ensemble in residence, will give its annual recital July 8 in the Western Washington University Performing Arts Center. Conductor Laureate Michael Palmer will lead one program, July 16 that features Principal Flute Christina Smith and Principal Harp Sophie Baird-Daniel in the Mozart Concerto for Flute and Harp.
Program Highlights
Violinist Simone Porter will dazzle with Max Bruch’s folk melody-infused Scottish Fantasy. Macedonian pianist Simon Trpčeski will attack the bravura demands of Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Sterling Elliott, an Avery Fisher Career Grant winner will perform the contemplative Elgar Cello Concerto. Members of the Bellingham Festival Chorus will be featured in works by Debussy and Fauré.
Chamber Music by the Bay Collaborates with the Conducting Institute
Maestro Lehninger will again lead a month-long Conductors Institute in which talented aspiring conductors will work closely with him and members of the orchestra. The young musicians will each conduct a work on the popular Chamber Music at the Leo program, Sunday July 13, as well as leading a short work on one of the orchestra concerts.
Ticket Sales
Tickets for all events go on sale March 3, 2025 through the Festival website www.bellinghamfestival.org.
BFM Free Events
BFM concerts in the community and masterclasses will offer curious listeners a chance to sample musical offerings for free.
Complete dates and programs for Festival 2025
Please note, changes to the events can happen so be sure to check the website for information on all Festival events and news.
Program 1, June 29, 2025
The Russian Masters
Dmitri Shostakovich: Festive Overture, Op. 96
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43
Simon Trpčeski, piano
Pyotr Illych Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 in E-minor, Op. 64
Program 2, July 5, 2025
London Calling
Errollyn Wallen: Chorale for Strings
Edward Elgar: Cello Concerto, Op. 85,
Sterling Elliott, cello
Ralph Vaughan Williams: A London Symphony (Symphony No. 2)
The Calidore String Quartet, July 8, 2025
Samuel Barber: String Quartet in B Minor, Op. 11
Wynton Marsalis: At the Octoroon Balls (Selection)
John Williams: With Malice Toward None (from the 2012 film Lincoln) PREMIERE
Erich Korngold: String Quartet No. 3 in D Major Op. 34
Program 3, July 11, 2025
Sights and Sounds of Scotland
Felix Mendelssohn: Fingal’s Cave Overture, Op. 26
Max Bruch: Scottish Fantasy, Op. 46
Simone Porter, violin
Felix Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3 “Scottish” in A-minor, Op. 56
Chamber Music at the Leo, July 13, 2025
Smaller works performed by principals of the orchestra and Fellows of the Conducting Institute. Wine and Catered Reception. New location this year at Hotel Leo, 1224 Cornwall Ave. 98225.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Serenade for Strings, Op. 48
Antonin Dvořák: Serenade for Winds in D-minor Op. 44
Program 4, July 16, 2025
The Viennese Connection
Conductor Laureate Michael Palmer, conducting
Carl Maria von Weber: Overture to Oberon, J. 306
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Concerto for Flute and Harp in C-Major, K. 299
Christina Smith, flute; Sophie Baird-Daniel, harp
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 in B-flat Major Op. 60
Program 5, July 20, 2025
An American in Paris
George Gershwin: An American in Paris
Claude Debussy: Nocturnes L. 98 (with women’s chorus)
Nuages
Fêtes
Sirènes
Germaine Tailleferre: Petite Suite (1957)
Prélude
Sicilienne
Les filles de la Rochelle
Gabriel Fauré: Pavane, Op. 50 (with chorus)
George Gershwin: Porgy and Bess—Symphonic Picture
Orchestral medley arranged by Robert Russell Bennett
