Marrowstone festival underway through Aug. 9

July 27, 2015

Alex Bartick

WWU Communications and Marketing intern

Founded in 1943 and currently hosted by Western Washington University, the Marrowstone Music Festival is a comprehensive 2-week orchestra-training program. The festival, put on by the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestras, includes chamber music studies, master classes, private instruction and performances. This year, the festival takes place from July 26 to Aug. 9.

“The music students and faculty come from around the country and are always impressed by the natural surroundings,” said Eric Kean, senior viola instructor at Western. Kean also teaches viola and chamber music at the festival. He has been teaching at this festival since 2003.

Marrowstone is divided into three divisions for students. The pre-college division for students ages 14-18, the University division for students ages 18-25 and the fellowship program for advanced collegiate music students. Students accepted into the fellowship program receive a full scholarship to attend the festival.

Most of the day at Marrowstone is filled up with festival and concert orchestra rehearsals. At the end of each day, the faculty performs a chamber music concert.

This year Western music professors Grant Donnellan, Eric Kean, Francine Peterson and Jeffrey Gilliam will be teaching at the festival.

If you want to see a faculty chamber concert, the Marrowstone chamber orchestra or Marrowstone festival orchestras, there are a series of six concerts from July 30 – August 9.  Here are the dates for the concerts:

  • Thursday, July 30 at 7:30 p.m. at Western’s Performing Arts Center, performance by the Faculty Chamber musicians.
  • Saturday, August 1 at 7:30 p.m. at Western’s PAC, performance by Marrowstone Chamber Orchestra.
  • Sunday, August 2 at 3 p.m. at the Mount Baker Theatre, performance by Marrowstone Festival Orchestras.
  • Thursday, August 6 at 7:30 p.m. at Western’s PAC, performance by Faculty Chamber musicians.
  • Saturday, August 8 at 7:30 p.m. at Western’s PAC, performance by Marrowstone Chamber Orchestra.
  • Sunday, August 9 at 3 p.m. at the Mount Baker Theatre, performance by Marrowstone Festival Orchestras.

If you want to purchase tickets, or find out more information about the concerts you can visit marrowstone.org or call Western’s box office at (360) 650-6146.