WELCOME TO SUMMERFEST 2023!

Surprise is indeed a powerful weapon. It can make us delighted, giddy, uneasy, shocked, amused… but it rarely fails to evoke an emotion, and it is the opposite of predictable. Through this summer’s theme, “The Great Unknown,” we will be exploring the joy of discovery and rediscovery, the delight in the unexpected, and the mystery of the exotic. We will discover fantastical and otherworldly pieces, myths, fairy tales, dreams, and memories.

In that spirit, I’m particularly excited to take the audience on a journey into the unknown on opening night: I invite you all to embrace the unexpected, “trust the chef,” and experience a musical menu that will be announced from the stage and will be a mix of the familiar and the surprising—music that will delight and inspire.

The rest of the season has a lot to be excited about too. I’m thrilled to welcome the incomparable Thomas Adès as this year’s Composer-in-Residence and as performer and guest curator, in his LJMS debut. I’m also happy to introduce a new series on Wednesday nights: Midweek Masterworks: intermission-free concerts, each focusing on one of the most celebrated pieces in the chamber music repertoire, putting it into musical context.

This year also sees the return of the Synergy Initiative, which helps originate exciting collaborations between creators from different art forms. This year during Synergy Weekend we present a special preview performance of a sensational reimagination of Carnival of the Animals, which you will get to see first before it goes to Lincoln Center and around the country. Another Synergy event will feature a musical combustion between four spectacular musicians from the worlds of classical music, jazz, bluegrass, and soul.

There is much more of the program to talk about, but as usual the beating heart of the festival is the unparalleled roster of fabulous musicians that will be on stage for these four weeks.

I look forward to leading you all on this adventure—and seeing you at the Conrad!

Inon Barnatan SummerFest Music Director