August 16-25, 2024
August 16-25, 2024
Each August Staunton Music Festival welcomes over 80 acclaimed professionals from around the world to perform in 30 events. Multiple concerts daily make for an exhilarating immersion in chamber, vocal, and symphonic music. The days are given over to one-hour, free admission programs, while the evenings come alive with longer, ticketed concerts preceded by special dinners and short lectures. And for those who enjoy music after dark, look for the Nightcap concerts that take place at 10:00 pm in interesting spaces downtown.
The Summer Pass includes all events listed below EXCEPT the six Special Events (three Nightcaps, Baroque the Bank, Plucked Heart-Strings, & Moses Memorial Lunch/Lecture). Free concerts do not require tickets.
Ticketing: (540) 800-6012
boxoffice@stauntonmusicfestival.org
Handel Extravaganza: Arcadia to the Academy
Friday August 16 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
The 26th annual Summer Festival opens with a rousing all-Handel program, ranging from chamber works to selections from Messiah.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY DAVIDSON PERRY-MILLER AND LINDA STEIGLEDER & CLARK WIEDMANN
Nightcap 1: Marie’s Crisis Piano Bar
Friday August 16 at 10:00 pm
Silver Line Theatre | $20
New York's famous sing-along café comes to Staunton for your enjoyment. Includes complimentary drinks.
Special Event, not included in any subscription passes
Tales of the Night
Saturday August 17 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
In the middle of the day, we sample the mysterious sounds of night with music by Beethoven, Caplet, and others.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
Baroque the Bank
Saturday August 17 at 3:00 pm
National Valley Bank | $20
The perfect time and place for a concert of Baroque concertos inside Historic National Valley Bank. Works by Telemann, Biber, and others.
Special Event, not included in any subscription passes
Poets and Puppets
Saturday August 17 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
A premiere arrangement Stravinsky's Petrushka closes an eclectic mix of works tied to themes of poets and puppets.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY SUSAN STEVICK, IN MEMORY OF KENNETH WEBB, AND THE ALLAN & MARGOT BLANK FOUNDATION
Summer Sounds
Sunday August 18 at 10:30 am
Blackfriars Playhouse | $16-$22
This one hour program in Blackfriars Playhouse spans nearly 800 years, from a famous 13th-century song to new music.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY KEITH MORTON, IN MEMORY OF BRUCE MORTON
Meet the New Graf!
Sunday August 18 at 4:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
SMF unveils the newest member of the family - a stunning replica of Conrad Graf's 1830 Viennese fortepiano made by Rod Regier.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY JIM & TAMARA RIDENOUR
Grumpy Hedgehog, Happy Oboe
Monday August 19 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
The Monday noon concert presents various chamber works written from the Baroque to early 20th century.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
Serenades at Noon
Tuesday August 20 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
This noon concert presents diverse selections ranging from early Middle Ages to a prize-winning new commission.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
Early Keyboard Extravaganza
Tuesday August 20 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
Many of the most important composers in history were keyboardists by training and profession, including Bach, Buxtehude, and Rameau.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY TERRY GRANT
Nightcap 2: A Mighty Wind
Tuesday August 20 at 10:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $20
The SMF wind musicians enjoy the chance to unwind with fun and rarely-heard works. Includes complimentary drinks.
Special Event, not included in any subscription passes
Bel Canto
Wednesday August 21 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
Vocal music takes center stage in this one-hour noon concert, featuring works by Mozart, Strozzi, and Judith Shatin.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
Meet the Composer: Roberto Sierra
Wednesday August 21 at 3:00 pm
Central United Methodist Church | Free admission
Enjoy conversation and music with Roberto Sierra, winner of a Latin Grammy and an acclaimed American composer.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
Beethoven Meets the Mambo
Wednesday August 21 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
Beethoven's Symphony No. 2 shares the stage with chamber works by Debussy, DeFalla, and composer-in-residence Roberto Sierra.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY ANN & DENMAN ZIRKLE AND MS BROOKS CUSHMAN
Mendelssohn’s Magic
Thursday August 22 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
A delightful selection of works by early 19th-century composer Felix Mendelssohn, touching on chamber, vocal and solo repertoire.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
SUPPORTED BY THE LEONARD & ELSIE CHITTUM MEMORIAL FUND
Plucked Heart-Strings
Thursday August 22 at 3:00 pm
National Valley Bank | $20
Enjoy a one-hour recital of music for solo harp, lute, and guitar within the spectacular interior of the 1903 National Valley Bank.
Special Event, not included in any subscription passes
Shakespearean Fantasies
Thursday August 22 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
This evening program celebrates diverse works inspired by the Bard's poems and plays.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY RODNEY YOUNG & MANDI SMITH AND CLIFF GARSTANG
Tabula Rasa
Friday August 23 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
In the kind of program SMF has become known for, this concert pairs Mozart with Arvo Pärt's stunning Tabula Rasa.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
SPONSORED BY LOUISE SCOTT AND JANET ONNIE & NELSON HAY
Baroque Inside/Out: A Night at Versailles
Friday August 23 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
Travel to the seat of royal splendor: Versailles. Period-instrument performances of Baroque music from the French capital.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY BILL & LISA MOORE, RICK CHITTUM, AND CHRISTINE & MICHAEL BURCH
Nightcap 3: Baroque Jam
Friday August 23 at 10:00 pm
Trinity Church's McCracken Hall TBD | $20
After the evening concert, the Festival's Baroque musicians retire to more intimate surroundings for a jam session.
Special Event, not included in any subscription passes
Viola, Viola
Saturday August 24 at 12:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church | Free admission
Fans of the viola take note! All three works feature two violas, including music by Dvořák, Fasch, and George Benjamin.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
SPONSORED BY THE ETHEL SMEAK MEMORIAL FUND AND FLORENCE JOWERS & PAUL WEBER
Baroque Lovers' Afternoon
Saturday August 24 at 3:00 pm
Central United Methodist Church | Free admission
Relax mid-afternoon with a one hour program of Baroque music performed on period instruments.
Admission is free and tickets are not required. Just show up!
SPONSORED BY BOB BARRON & FRED BLANTON
Historias de Cuba
Saturday August 24 at 7:30 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
The sounds of Cuba provide the inspiration for this eclectic program by Gershwin, Gottschalk, Tania León, and Hans Werner Henze.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
SPONSORED BY LIZA DELZELL AND ANNE & JOHN SILLS
J.S.B. at the Blackfriars
Sunday August 25 at 10:30 am
Blackfriars Playhouse | $16-$22
A new work by Zachary Wadsworth is premiered, alongside two perennial favorites by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.
Moses Memorial Lunch & Lecture
Sunday August 25 at 1:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $40
Special guest Dr. Tim Carter (emeritus from UNC-Chapel Hill) speaks in detail about Bach's B-Minor Mass, preceded by catered meal.
Special Event, not included in any subscription passes
SPONSORED BY TIMBERLAKE SMITH AND THE P. DONALD MOSES MEMORIAL EDUCATION FUND
Finale: Bach's Mass in B Minor
Sunday August 25 at 4:00 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church | $22-$38
Bach's great Mass in B Minor for soloists, chorus and orchestra closes the summer season.
Event is included in Summer Pass and Annual Pass.