Education & Community Engagement
Chamber Music Northwest brings the world’s greatest musicians to both young people and adults in every corner of our community. From school and social service organization partnerships and masterclasses, to our Young Artist Institute and free Community Concerts, our music and musicians don’t stop at the concert stage!
Check out our Community Education playlist on YouTube to watch our recorded masterclasses, musical conversations, and more.
Sign up for our monthly Education & Community Engagement (ECE) newsletters to learn about our upcoming opportunities!
Young Artist Institute
Launched in 2022, Chamber Music Northwest’s Young Artist Institute (YAI) is an intensive education program for 16 talented string players from around the world, ages 14-18. For the 2025 cohort, the three-week program will be held from June 15 to July 6 on the University of Portland campus.
During and just prior to CMNW’s 2025 Summer Festival, the young musicians are featured in performances throughout the community, including free showcases, pop-ups around town, and on the new mobile concert stage for a community concert. As well, during the first two weeks of the festival everyone is welcome to come see them in pre-concert prelude performances!
Prelude Performances
Chamber Music Northwest is proud to offer our audiences pre-concert music that also provides performance opportunities for Portland-area student musicians! Our Prelude Performance series creates space in our programming at venues for local young musicians to perform 30-minute sessions prior to the mainstage concert that are free to the public. These concerts have become an anticipated part of our Summer Festival, and we have expanded to include some Prelude Performances during our Year-Round Season concerts. Our Preludes have featured young musicians from nine years-old to graduate students, and have included performances for solo instruments, saxophone and percussion ensembles, NOLA-inspired brass band, and more!
Audiences: put these 2025 Prelude Performance dates on your calendar!
Brandenburg All-Stars
6/30 at 6:30pm | Kaul Auditorium Prelude Performance with our Young Artist Institute musicians
Kit Armstrong: The Goldberg Variations
7/1 at 6:30pm | Kaul Auditorium Prelude Performance with our Young Artist Institute musicians
Revelations: Schiff, Schubert, Franck & Ravaei
7/10 at 6:30pm | The Reser Prelude Performance by young local artists
Revelations: Schiff, Schubert, Franck & Ravaei
7/12 at 7 pm | Kaul Auditorium Prelude Performance with local young artists
Powerhouse Strings: Mendelssohn’s Octet & More
7/17 at 6:30pm | The Reser Prelude Performance by young local artists
Powerhouse Strings: Mendelssohn’s Octet & More
7/19 at 7 pm | Kaul Auditorium Prelude Performance with local young artists
Latticework & Legends
7/24 at 6:30pm | The Reser Prelude Performance by young local artists
Latticework & Legends
7/26 at 7 pm | Kaul Auditorium Prelude Performance with local young artists
Local Young Musicians: Interested in performing in one of CMNW’s Preludes? Applications for our 2025 Summer Festival are open NOW! Click here to apply
Community Engagement Residencies
Chamber Music Northwest is thrilled to host Community Engagement Residencies!
Free Concerts & Public Events
In a concert hall, or outdoors where you can pack a picnic and bring your own seats, we are delighted to offer these fun and family-friendly concerts! Whether during our Summer Festival or throughout our season, we are delighted to bring a number of free community events to the Portland area. Engagements include masterclasses and coachings, open rehearsals, and community concerts.
2025 Summer Festival Outdoor Concerts for our Community
You’ll see the famed SoundsTruck NW, the Northwest’s premier mobile concert stage, in action for the July 3, 15 & 25 performances!
July 3 @ 7pm | University of Portland featuring Young Artist Institute
July 11 @ 7pm | Chehalem Cultural Center – LaJoie Theatre (Newberg) featuring Opus13
July 15 @ 7pm | North Clackamas Park featuring pianist Ryota Yamazaki & violinist Isabelle Ai Durrenberger
July 25 @ 7pm | Vancouver Arts Hub featuring the Columbia River Brass Quintet in partnership with Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Media Sponsor for this concert The Columbian
Free Community Concert Series sponsored by All Classical Radio
Mobile Concert Stage sponsored by SoundsTruck NW
Masterclasses
Chamber Music Northwest is delighted to present free masterclasses whenever possible. Not only do young musicians in our region benefit from these sessions, but our masterclasses allow the community to witness our world-class musicians coaching the next generation of musicians in our area. We record and offer most of these masterclasses in our online library.
Protégé Project
Chamber Music Northwest’s Protégé Project is a world-class professional residency for emerging musicians—soloists, ensembles, composers—that cultivates and encourages the growth of chamber music’s rising stars. Protégé Project artists are featured in CMNW summer festival concerts, and present music engagements in the community.
Since its founding in 2010, Chamber Music Northwest’s Protégé Project has played a key role in launching the professional careers of dozens of America’s finest young chamber musicians including the now internationally renowned ensembles Dover Quartet, Jasper String Quartet, Akropolis Reed Quintet, Viano String Quartet, and Opus13 who we’ve delightedly brought back to Portland in later years.
Individual artists have earned impressive accolades since their protégé time with us, such as: violinists Diana Adamyan, Benjamin Beilman, Nikki Chooi, Bella Hristova, Anna Lee, and Claire Wells; pianists Yekwon Sunwoo, Yevgeny Yontov, Zitong Wang, Chloe Mun, and our own Artistic Director Gloria Chien*; cellist Zlatomir Fung; bassist Nina Bernat, composers Andy Akiho, Alistair Coleman, Kian Ravaei, Chris Rogerson, and Gabriella Smith; and many others.
The 2025 Summer Festival Protégé Project Artists are violinist Isabelle Ai Durrenberger, pianist Yutong Sun, and string quartet Opus13. These incredible artists will be with us for several weeks during the summer festival, do look out for them performing in several concerts, across multiple weeks.
Artists-in-Residence
Chamber Music Northwest’s Artists-In-Residence are featured in CMNW concerts for a full year and present many free education and community music programs throughout our region.
In Schools & the Community
Chamber Music Northwest brings world-renowned chamber musicians to local schools, hospitals, retirement communities, and residential treatment facilities.
Did you know we bring Music Education Access Programs to local schools? WATCH the video and learn more! We do this as an intensive music immersion experience with a goal of building students’ familiarity with music and facilitating a culture that includes the arts in everyday learning.