CSUN Chamberfest was held from Feb. 1 to Feb. 3 at the Shigemi Matsumoto Recital Hall.
This event was headed by Lorenz Gamma, the director of the chamber music program at CSUN. The event featured instrumentalists visiting from all over the world and some CSUN students.
ChamberFest is in its third year at CSUN, bringing people from all backgrounds to play chamber music.
“It’s an opportunity for our [CSUN] students to get in touch with professional musicians who come from outside,” Gamma said of the event. “CSUN students also get to see professionals in action, how they quickly rehearse, how chamber music works, and they perform two days later.”
Over 60 people gathered in the recital hall to see four pieces played by professional musicians and CSUN music majors.
People were attentive and relaxed as the musicians played their instruments. After the performances, the musicians bowed to cheers and applause from the audience.
Gamma introduced the show and the students before the first piece was played. The first piece was a piano quintet with music by Antonín Dvo?ák, featuring Gamma on violin and four of CSUN’s music students.
Alizah Chao, a music industry studies major at CSUN, a senior and violinist in the first piece, was excited to play in her first ChamberFest alongside Gamma.
“Playing with someone of the caliber of Lorenz Gamma was something to behold. I had such a great time and I loved playing with my friends. It was nice to play with them too,” Chao expressed.
The second piece of music was a trio with clarinet player Julia Heinen, cello player Thomas Loewenheim, and Françoise Régnat on the piano. This piece had music from Johannes Brahms: Allegro, Adagio, and Andantino Grazioso.
The third piece of music was played by Gamma, Wendy Richman on the viola, Michael Kaufman on the cello, and Peter Klimo on the piano. The piano quartet was played beautifully with music by Joaquín Turina.
After the third performance, there was a brief intermission before the last performance of the night, and at this time, Gamma was able to announce the reception after the concert.
The last piece was performed by musicians Chen Xi on the violin, Michael Heald on the violin, David Walther on the viola, Thomas Loewenheim, and Dmitry Rachmanov on the piano. This performance was met with loud applause before and after the performance was over.
The lights illuminated the hall, signaling that the show was over and it was time for the reception.
Before the concert began, there was a master class from 4:30 to 6 p.m. with Chen Xi, who played violin in the show and is a violin professor at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing.
“It’s a real opportunity for students to meet somebody from a different continent,” Gamma says. “At age 17, he [Chen] was the youngest winner of the Tchaikovsky competition. It’s a great opportunity for our young students to meet somebody who, at a young age, was very, very much into music.”
Nicholas Lampert and Jasmine Forooghi, sophomore music performance majors, were in the master class with Chen and worked with him on a piece last year.
“He gave a lot of advice geared towards us string players, and it was very easy to understand and digest it,” Forooghi explained.
“My favorite part of the master class was being able to work with [Chen], and he gave us ideas that no one gave us before. They were super helpful,” Lampert said.
The concert allowed the audience to hear chamber music based on the musicians’ hearing, leaving them with a deeper understanding. Some of the CSUN music students had the opportunity to be on stage and witness professional musicians at work.
