AMFS Artist-Faculty, all top musicians from renowned orchestras, opera companies, and conservatories, come together to play their favorite chamber music works.

This adventurous program begins with a chamber version of Steven Mackey’s Deal. In the composer’s words, “There is a musicians’ joke that goes, ‘How do you get an electric guitar player to shut up?’ Answer: ‘Put music in front of him.’ Generally speaking, guitarists don’t read music in the same sense that, say, cellists do. Cellists are trained to read music the way an actor reads a play, even at sight endowing it with character, history, and many levels of psychology; they interpret. Guitarists read music like drivers in a foreign city reading road-signs; they decode. After all, the guitar evolved from an aural and improvised tradition. With that in mind, I left the guitar part open for improvisation in my first electric guitar concerto, Deal, written for jazz great Bill Frisell.”

George Meyer, son of double bassist Edgar Meyer, is a violinist, violist, and composer whose world premiere is featured on this program. A Juilliard-trained musician, he blends classical and bluegrass, often touring with his father to perform original, co-written, and traditional folk music.

Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1 is impeccably crafted, abounds with memorable melodies, and gives the pianist a virtuosic run for the money. Schumann called the piece “the master trio of our age” and added, “[Mendelssohn] has raised himself so high that we can indeed say he is the Mozart of the 19th century.” The last movement brilliantly combines elements of the previous three, leading to a glorious finale.

Don’t miss this fascinating mix of great chamber classics and an American folk-style premiere! 

Also featured on the program is the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, comprising emerging young artists who perform music by prominent living composers and twentieth-century classics, as well as new works by the Festival’s student composers. Always a joyful and creative 75 minutes of music-making.

Summer 2026 Chamber Music Dates:
- Monday, July 6
- Saturday, July 11
- Saturday, July 18
- Saturday, July 25
- Sunday, August 2 (at 2:00 PM)
- Saturday, August 8
- Saturday, August 15
- Saturday, August 22