PORTLAND — Portland Chamber Music Festival announces its second annual Winter Warmer series which will take place March 6-8, 2025 at Hannaford Hall on USM’s Portland campus. Designed to serve as a musical hearth bringing people together during what can be a challenging time of year, the 2025 Winter Warmer season features the East Coast Chamber Orchestra and four-time Grammy-nominated tenor Nicholas Phan, free education programs for all ages, and unique opportunities for community members to connect directly with these charismatic, internationally acclaimed artists.
The first concert, Slavic Strings, blends folk influences with a modern flair yielding a rich tapestry of chamber music from Eastern European composers, followed by a post-concert Q&A with the artists. For the second program, titled Illuminations, the East Coast Chamber Orchestra joins forces with four-time Grammy-nominated tenor Nicholas Phan for a rapturous program centered around Britten’s surrealistic song cycle Les Illuminations and an iconic American masterwork by John Adams. This matinee performance will be followed by a reception with complimentary refreshments. Both concerts take place at Hannaford Hall in the Abromson Community Education Center on USM’s Portland campus.
In addition to the concert programs, PCMF Artistic Director Melissa Reardon will lead a masterclass with string students from the Maine Suzuki Association, which is free and open to the public. Details on these and other Winter Warmer-related activities will be available on the PCMF web site at pcmf.org.
Program Information
Complete program information including artist and composer biographies, audio/video samples, and program notes are available at pcmf.org.
Winter Warmer I: Slavic Strings
Members of the East Coast Chamber Orchestra
Thursday, March 6 at 7 PM
Hannaford Hall, USM (88 Bedford St, Portland)
Grażyna Bacewicz Quartet for Four Violins
Anton Arensky String Quartet No. 2 in A Minor, Op. 35
Antonín Dvořák String Quintet No. 2 in G major, Op. 77
Winter Warmer II: Illuminations
East Coast Chamber Orchestra
Nicholas Phan, tenor
Saturday, March 8 at 2 PM
Hannaford Hall, USM (88 Bedford St, Portland)
William Grant Still Danzas de Panama
Benjamin Britten Les Illuminations for Tenor and String Orchestra, Op. 18
Hanna Benn Where Springs Not Fail
John Adams Shaker Loops
Ticket Information
Tickets available through PortTIX, the trusted box office for PCMF.
PHONE 207-842-0800
ONLINE www.porttix.com
IN-PERSON 20 Myrtle Street, Portland, ME 04101
Single Tickets
$75 Sustainer
$50 General Admission
$30 Introductory Price (for first-time PCMF attendees—limited availability)
Ages 21 and under FREE (tickets required)
Package Deal
Buy both concerts and save 10% on all-in pricing (including fees)
About the Artists
Described by the Boston Globe as “one of the world’s most remarkable singers,” American tenor Nicholas Phan makes his PCMF debut with this program. An avid recitalist, in 2010 he co-founded the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago (CAIC) to promote art song and vocal chamber music, where he serves as artistic director. He also has served as guest curator for projects with the Bravo! Vail Music Festival, Laguna Beach Music Festival, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Merola Opera program, WQXR, and San Francisco Performances. A celebrated recording artist, Phan’s most recent album, A Change is Gonna Come, is nominated for the 2025 Grammy Award for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album. Three previous albums, Stranger, Clairières, and Gods and Monsters, were nominated for the same award in 2022, 2020, and 2017.
“Mixing the transparency and coherence of a string quartet with an orchestra’s warmth and heft” (New York Times), the East Coast Chamber Orchestra (ECCO) is comprised of some of today’s most vibrant and gifted young string players—soloists, chamber musicians, principals of major American orchestras, and Grammy award winners. ECCO members play with the symphony orchestras of Philadelphia, Minnesota, San Francisco, Chicago, St. Louis, Seattle, and Boston among others. Members also play with the Jasper, Jupiter, and Parker quartets, as well as the Horszowski Trio, Trio Cavatina, Sejong Soloists, Time for Three, and Chamber Music Society II. For a few concentrated periods of time each year, the members of ECCO meet for rehearsal and musical exploration. Cooking, eating, enjoying close friendships, and now sharing tips for raising the next generation of ECCO are important aspects of their gatherings.
Roster
Violins
Becca Fischer (faculty, Mannes College of Music)
J Freivogel (Jasper String Quartet)
Min-Young Kim (Daedalus Quartet)
Li-Mei Liang (faculty, New England Conservatory)
Kobi Malkin (Concertmaster, American Ballet Theatre)
Miho Saegusa (Aizuri Quartet)*
Yezu Elizabeth Woo (Artistic Director, New York in Chuncheon [South Korea] Music Festival)*
Violas
Andrew Gonzalez (Jasper String Quartet)*
Melissa Reardon (PCMF Artistic Director, Borromeo String Quartet)
Jessica Thompson (Daedalus Quartet)
Cellos
Rachel Freivogel (Jasper String Quartet)
Michael Katz (Lysander Piano Trio)*
Jia Kim (Artistic Director, Chamber Music Stowe)*
Bass
Anthony Manzo (Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center)
* indicates PCMF debut
About PCMF
The Portland Chamber Music Festival connects, inspires, and celebrates community through the uniquely intimate power of chamber music, bringing a diverse array of innovative, acclaimed artists to Maine from around the world. Since its founding in 1994 PCMF has been strongly committed to the performance of contemporary music, expansion of the chamber music canon, and cultivation of the next generation of chamber musicians and audiences.
