12th season of Mimir Chamber Music Festival took place July 9-17

Stephen Rose, Nathan Cole, Brant Taylor and Kirsten Docter are among this season's Mimir performers.

Fort Worth, TX

6/29/2009

The Mimir Chamber Music Festival, named for the Norse god of wisdom, featuring outstanding artists from the world's leading orchestras and music schools coming together to share their love for chamber music took place at the PepsiCo Recital Hall at TCU. Mimir is the premiere Festival in the South Central United States dedicated exclusively to the study and performance of chamber music. Artists are selected not only for their superb performing skills, but also for their ability to teach. 

Throughout the two-week Festival, guest artists hold master classes for aspiring pre-professional musicians, selected for participation through a rigorous audition process. In the evenings, guest artists present a series of five exciting and distinctly different musical performances.

This year's performers are:

• Erin Keefe (violin), winner of the 2006 Avery Fisher Career Grant and a member of the prestigious Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Two program

• Stephen Rose (violin), principal second violin of the Cleveland Orchestra

• Curt Thompson (violin), founding director of Mimir and associate professor of violin in the TCU School of Music

• Che-Yen Chen (viola) is a four-time winner of the National Viola Competition in his native Taiwan. He studied at The Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School and is now principal viola of the San Diego Symphony.

• Kirsten Docter (viola) is a member of Cavani String Quartet, winner of the Naumburg Chamber Music Award.

• Brant Taylor (cello), a member of the Chicago Symphony, appears as guest soloist with orchestras and at music festivals around the world. In addition to teaching at the DePaul University School of Music, he also performs with the band Pink Martini.

• Alessio Bax (piano) was First Prize winner of the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition in 2000. He has performed with more than 70 orchestras and worked with a number of esteemed conductors.

• José Feghali (piano), Gold Medalist at the 1985 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, has been Artist-in-Residence in the TCU School of Music for many years. He is also associate director of Mimir.

• John Novacek (piano) is a Grammy-nominated musician who regular tours the world as a solo recitalist, chamber musician and concerto soloist. He has recorded more than 30 CDs.

• Nathan Cole (violin) is a member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra╒s first violin section and faculty member at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University.

Mimir concerts will are set for 7:30 p.m. July 9 and 11, 3 p.m. July 12, 7:30 p.m. July 14, 16 and 17. There will be a special performance at 7 p.m. July 13 in Granbury. Individual tickets are $25, or $15 for TCU faculty, staff and students with ID.

For a complete schedule and detailed information, go to www.mimirfestival.org.