Seattle Chamber Music Society Announces 2026-27 Signature Series, September 2026 to May 2027

Seattle Chamber Music Society Announces 2026-27 Signature Series
September 2026 to May 2027

Series Expands to Seven Chamber Music Concerts in its Third Season 

Images are here: bit.ly/4yupRob (photo credit: Jenna Poppe for SCMS)

 

Seattle, July 20, 2026 — Seattle Chamber Music Society (SCMS) today announced programming for its 2026–27 Signature Series, running from September 23, 2026 through May 23, 2027 at Nordstrom Recital Hall. Across seven concert programs, leading classical musicians will perform music by Billy Childs, Hannah Ishizaki, and Kelly-Marie Murphy, as well as Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Dvorak, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Puccini, Ravel, and Shostakovich. Discounted season subscriptions are on sale starting today, and single-program tickets will be available on August 25 at https://www.seattlechambermusic.org/concert_series/signature-series-2027.

James Ehnes curates the concerts in his role as the Gilbert Omenn and Martha Darling Artistic Director of SCMS. Performers joining Ehnes on the series are Edward Arron, Yulianna Avdeeva, Marc-André Hamelin, Amy Schwartz Moretti, Jonathan Vinocour, and Orion Weiss, as well as the Ehnes Quartet, Balourdet Quartet, Isidore String Quartet, and New Orford String Quartet.

“Each season, the Signature Series gives us an opportunity to present chamber music in its fullest sense. We get to celebrate the works that have defined this art form and give a platform to the new voices shaping where it goes next,” said Ehnes. “I'm especially glad audiences will get to experience these performances in the kind of intimate setting where chamber music really comes alive,” he added. 

“Through our Signature Series, and Summer and Winter Festivals, Seattle Chamber Music Society presents live chamber music performances year-round,” said John Holloway, the Dr. Oliver E. Cobb Chief Executive Officer of SCMS. “We’re embracing an exciting period of expansion at SCMS, which reflects a deepening appreciation for this art form and chamber music’s broader potential for enriching cultural and civic life,” he added.

Last week, SCMS announced plans to build a new Center for Chamber Music in downtown Seattle—the city’s first permanent venue designed exclusively for chamber music performance, education, recording, and community engagement—within the newly renovated U.S. Bank Building on 6th & Union. This past Spring, SCMS launched SCMS Records, a new record label showcasing celebrated artists and performances. Last season, SCMS named The Balourdet Quartet as its first ever String Quartet in Residence and acquired The Concert Truck®, a traveling music venue that presents concerts across the country and redefines how people experience live music.

SCMS’s 2026-27 Signature Series opens September 23 with Yulianna Avdeeva tracing the evolution of keyboard repertoire over two centuries. Her program traverses Bach’s Italian Concerto in F Major, BWV 971, Beethoven’s imaginative Fantasy in G minor, Op. 77 and monumental Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata,” and Ravel works inspired by dance, including Valses nobles et sentimentales and Pavane pour une infante défunte. 

On October 25, the Isidore String Quartet reunites with American composer and Pulitzer Prize finalist Billy Childs for his String Quartet No. 4, “American Mosaic,” written for the Quartet. The piece explores the past and present state of race relations in the United States and presents Childs’s hope for the future. Also on the program is Mozart’s “Prussian” String Quartet No. 21 in D Major, K. 575, allegedly written as a royal commission for King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia, who was an amateur cellist.

November 15 brings together the Ehnes Quartet with violist Jonathan Vinocour. The program marks a unique opportunity to hear both of Brahms's delightful and challenging String Quintets, performed by longtime collaborators. The Ehnes Quartet was founded at SCMS and its musicians have played chamber music together in various formations for more than two decades. 

On December 6, Marc-André Hamelin joins the Balourdet Quartet for Dvorák’s sublime Piano Quintet No. 2 in A Major, one of the most magnificent and beloved works in chamber music. The concert features/premieres a new work by composer Hannah Ishizaki, the current Composer-in-Residence of Young Concert Artists.

For February 28, Orion Weiss, Amy Schwartz Moretti, and Edward Arron embark on an all-piano-trio program. They’ll play Dvorák’s Piano Trio in F minor, Op. 65, widely considered one of Dvorák’s major achievements in chamber music, and a landmark work of the piano trio genre. In addition, they’ll perform Mozart’s Piano Trio in E Major, K.542, the composer’s only completed multi-movement work in E Major, and Schumann’s Piano Trio No. 2 in F Major, Op. 80.

On March 21, James Ehnes joins the New Orford String Quartet for Beethoven's String Quintet in C Major, Op. 29 ("Storm"), the composer's only original composition for string quintet. The concert also features Kelly-Marie Murphy’s Dark Energy, a quartet inspired by the antigravity force affecting the evolution of the cosmos, and Mendelssohn’s String Quartet No. 6 in F minor, Op. 80.

Rounding out the series on May 23, James Ehnes and Orion Weiss present a program that explores pivotal moments of the lives of three great composers. Schubert’s lyrical Rondo in B minor D. 895, written near the end of his life, remains one of most beloved of his chamber works and is the only work for violin and piano published during his lifetime. Strauss’s Sonata in Eb Major Op. 18, composed around the time when he met his future wife, soprano Pauline de Ahna, brims with romance. Ehnes and Weiss will also play Prokofiev’s brooding and profound Sonata in F minor Op. 80, a haunting masterpiece shaped by the turmoil of World War II.

Yulianna Avdeeva (photo credit: Jenna Poppe for SCMS)

 

Seattle Chamber Music Society — 2026-27 Signature Series

 
Concert I

Wednesday, September 23, 2026, 7:30pm
Yulianna Avdeeva, piano

• J.S. Bach: Italian Concerto in F Major, BWV 971 

• Beethoven: Fantasy in G minor, Op. 77

• Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata”

• Ravel: Pavane pour une infante défunte 

• Ravel: Valses nobles et sentimentales

• Ravel: La valse

Nordstrom Recital Hall

 

Concert II 

Sunday, October 25, 2026, 2pm

Isidore String Quartet

• Mozart: String Quartet No. 21 in D Major, K. 575

• Billy Childs: String Quartet No. 4, “American Mosaic”

• Second half: To be announced

Nordstrom Recital Hall

 

Concert III

Sunday, November 15, 2026, 2pm

Ehnes Quartet with Jonathan Vinocour, viola

• Brahms: String Quintet No. 1 in F Major, Op. 88

• Brahms: String Quintet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 111

Nordstrom Recital Hall

 

Concert IV

Sunday, December 6, 2026, 2pm

Balourdet Quartet with Marc-André Hamelin, piano

• Puccini: Crisantemi

• Hannah Ishizaki: New Commission

• Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 3

• Dvorák: Piano Quintet No. 2 in A Major

Nordstrom Recital Hall

 

Concert V
Sunday, February 28, 2027, 2pm

Orion Weiss, piano; Amy Schwartz Moretti, violin, and Edward Arron, cello

• Mozart: Piano Trio in E Major, K.542

• Schumann: Piano Trio No. 2 in F Major, Op. 80

• Dvorák: Piano Trio in F minor, Op. 65

Nordstrom Recital Hall

 

Concert VI
Sunday, March 21, 2027, 2pm

New Orford String Quartet with James Ehnes, viola

• Kelly-Marie Murphy: Dark Energy

• Mendelssohn: String Quartet, Op. 80

• Beethoven: “Storm” Quintet

Nordstrom Recital Hall

 

Concert VII

Sunday, May 23, 2027, 2pm
James Ehnes & Orion Weiss

• Schubert Rondo in B minor D. 895

• Prokofiev Sonata in F minor Op. 80

• Strauss Sonata in Eb Major Op. 18

Nordstrom Recital Hall

 

About Seattle Chamber Music Society

The mission of Seattle Chamber Music Society is to cultivate a deep appreciation for chamber music by presenting exceptional performances in welcoming and accessible formats. Through education, community engagement, and a commitment to excellence, SCMS seeks to position chamber music as a central cultural force, both locally and globally, while ensuring its enduring relevance and sustainability. 

Each year, SCMS presents a Winter Festival in January and a Summer Festival in July at the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall, bringing the world’s finest classical musicians to the stage. These intimate chamber music performances captivate both seasoned enthusiasts and newcomers alike. In addition to its renowned festivals, SCMS offers an expanded year-round lineup, including the Signature Series, Crescendo Concerts in Seattle’s most stunning homes, and Concerts at the Center for Chamber Music, providing unparalleled access to extraordinary musical experiences. 

SCMS also enriches the community through dynamic engagement programs designed for audiences of all ages. From inspiring young learners in elementary schools to enriching lives in retirement communities, and from performances in hospitals and parks to concerts on wheels, SCMS remains steadfast in its mission to bring world-class chamber music to every corner of our community.

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Media contact:

Allison Van Etten, Vice President
8VA Music Consultancy
allison@8vamusicconsultancy.com