Musical Chairs Chamber Music Festival | May 22-30, 2026
At the Musical Chairs Chamber Music Festival, nobody stays in the same seat for long! This unique international gathering brings together outstanding students and faculty from institutions across four continents to perform, teach, and collaborate. Ensembles shift and recombine throughout the festival, creating thrilling new musical interactions and showcasing music as a truly universal language, shared by 86 musicians on and off the stage.
Schedule of events
Concerts
May 22, 2026 | 7:30 p.m.
Opening Concert: Brahms, Bartók & Dvořák
Redpath Hall | Free Admission
May 24, 2026 | 7:30 p.m.
Schulhoff, Britten, Sollima, Ravel & Schoenberg
Redpath Hall | Free Admission
May 25, 2026 | 12:00 p.m.
Intermezzo: Tyree, Beethoven & Reger
Tanna Schulich Hall | Free Admission
May 26, 2026 | 7:30 p.m.
Beethoven, Haydn & Shostakovich
Redpath Hall | Free Admission
May 28, 2026 | 7:30 p.m.
Arensky, Fauré & Messiaen
Redpath Hall | Free Admission
May 29, 2026 | 5:00 p.m.
Chamber Music Marathon! A Musical 5 à 7 (... à until we're done!)
Elizabeth Wirth Lobby | Free Admission with paying bar
May 30, 2026 | 10:00 a.m.
Chamber Music Marathon! A Musical Mimosa!
Elizabeth Wirth Lobby | Free Admission with paying bar
May 30, 2026 | 7:30 p.m.
Closing Concert: Taneyev & Ensecu
Redpath Hall | Free Admission
Masterclasses
May 23, 2026
2:00 p.m. | Kyoko Hashimoto, piano
Clara Lichtenstein Hall | Free Admission
May 24, 2026
10:30 a.m. | Violaine Melançon, violin
2:00 p.m. | William Coleman, viola
Clara Lichtenstein Hall | Free Admission
May 25, 2026
2:00 p.m. | Joona Pulkkinen, cello
Clara Lichtenstein Hall | Free Admission
May 26, 2026
10:30 a.m. | Yan Lim, piano
2:00 p.m. | Stefan Mendl, piano
Clara Lichtenstein Hall | Free Admission
May 27, 2026
10:30 a.m. | Lina Bahn, violin
2:00 p.m. | Matthew Jones, viola
Clara Lichtenstein Hall | Free Admission
May 28, 2026
10:30 a.m. | Daniel de Borah, piano
2:00 p.m. | Marina Scalafiotti, piano
Clara Lichtenstein Hall | Free Admission
Participating Institutions
Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University (Australia)
Mozarteum University Salzburg (Austria)
Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien (MDW) (Austria)
Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music (Singapore)
Guildhall School of Music and Drama (United Kingdom)
USC Thornton School of Music (United States)