Monday, October 20, 2025—Santiago Cañón-Valencia (cello) with Victor Santiago Asuncion (piano)
Monday, November 17, 2025—Maxwell String Quartet
Monday, February 23, 2026—Andrés Cárdenes (violin), Steven Doane (cello), Ines Irawati (piano)
Monday, March 16, 2026—Conor Hanick (piano)
Tuesday, April 14, 2026—Diderot String Quartet
Monday, May 4, 2026—Artifex Consort
7:30 PM

We are excited to present the 2025–2026 season of the Athenaeum’s Barbara and William Karatz Chamber Music Series, which features artists who have established themselves as favorites with our audiences and those we enthusiastically welcome for the first time. Our season opens October 20 with cellist Santiago Cañón-Valencia, who wowed us a couple seasons ago with a solo recital and will return with pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion in an adventurous program of duos. The season also features two remarkable string quartets (longtime Athenaeum favorites, the Maxwell Quartet, on November 17 and gut string heroes, the Diderot Quartet) on April 14; star pianist Conor Hanick on March 16; early music experts, the Artifex Consort, on May 4; and two of our important teachers, violinist Andrés Cárdenes and cellist Steven Doane, joined by local favorite pianist Ines Irawati, on February 23. Putting these concerts together has been a true labor of love, and we can’t wait to welcome you back in October!

Monday, October 7, 2024—Ani Aznavoorian, cello & Marta Aznavoorian, piano
Monday, November 4, 2024—Boris Allakhverdyan, clarinet & Alin Melik-Adamyan, piano with guest Alex Greenbaum, cello
Monday, December 2, 2024—Andrius Žlabys, piano
Monday, February 10, 2025—AGAVE with Reginald Mobley, countertenor
Tuesday, April 8, 2025—Great Wall String Quartet
Monday, May 12, 2025—New Orford String Quartet
7:30 PM

The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library is pleased to present the 2024–2025 season of the Barbara and William Karatz Chamber Concert Series, beginning October 7, 2024. The series, continuing through May 12, 2025, is set in the Athenaeum’s Joan & Irwin Jacobs Music Room. Enjoy chamber music as it was intended—in a warm, personal setting, where you are treated as a guest in our historic library. At each concert you will hear a mix of music rarely presented locally and cherished masterpieces performed by the finest chamber musicians we know. We welcome back a few favorite artists from past seasons along with some exciting new performers that are sure to inspire. All performances include a preconcert talk at 6:45 p.m. and are followed by a reception with the artists in the Sharon & Joel Labovitz Entry Hall.

October 29, 2023–April 30, 2024
7:30 PM

The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library is pleased to present the 2023–2024 season of the Barbara and William Karatz Chamber Concert Series, beginning October 29, 2023, at 6 p.m. The series, which continues until April 30, 2024, is set in the intimate Joan & Irwin Jacobs Music Room inside the Athenaeum. Enjoy chamber music as it was intended—in a warm, personal setting, where you are treated as a guest in our historic library. At each concert you’ll hear a mix of music rarely presented locally and cherished masterpieces, guaranteed to uplift and move you, performed by the finest chamber musicians we know. We welcome back a few favorite artists from past seasons along with some exciting new faces that are sure to inspire.

October 28, 2022–April 15, 2023
7:30 PM

The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library is pleased to present the 2022–2023 season of the Barbara and William Karatz Chamber Concert Series, beginning October 28, 2022, at 7:30 p.m. The performance series that continues through April 15, 2023, will be set in the intimate Joan & Irwin Jacobs Music Room inside the Athenaeum. Enjoy chamber music as it was intended—in a warm, personal setting, where you are treated as a guest in our historic library. At each concert you’ll hear a mix of music rarely presented locally as well as cherished masterpieces, guaranteed to uplift and move you, performed by the finest chamber musicians we know. We will welcome back some of the Athenaeum’s favorite artists from past seasons along with some new faces that are sure to inspire.

January 18, February 2, 14, March 15, April 25 & May 23, 2022

7:30 PM

We are pleased to announce six in-person chamber concerts featuring Maxwell String Quartet playing Haydn and Dvorak, on January 18, Max Opferkuch, clarinet, and the Zelter Quartet playing Brahms and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's Clarinet Quintets, on February 2, the Poulenc Trio, on February 14, the Neave Trio playing trios by Louise Farrenc, Germaine Tailleferre, and Ravel, on March 15, the Valencia Baryton Project, on April 25, and Cecil Lytle playing Liszt (late works) and Fats Waller, on May 23. The concerts will start in person at the Athenaeum’s Joan and Irwin Jacobs Music Room at 7:30 PM.

ONLINE

We are pleased to announce three livestreamed chamber concerts featuring Grammy and Emmy Award-winning pianist Gloria Cheng, on February 15, Che-Yen Chen and Takae Ohnishi, on March 15, and Quartet Nouveau, on May 10. The concerts will be livestreamed to YouTube Live from the Athenaeum’s Joan and Irwin Jacobs Music Room at 7 PM. Ticketholders will have 48 hours access to a recording.

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