Music at Trinity to Launch COMPOSERFEST With Focus On Franz Josef Haydn

Music at Trinity will launch ComposerFest, a new two-day concert initiative devoted to an in-depth exploration of a single composer. The inaugural edition will focus on the music of Franz Josef Haydn and will take place at Trinity Cathedral in downtown Phoenix.

ComposerFest will feature two free public concerts examining Haydn’s chamber, vocal, and keyboard music. The performances will be held at Trinity Cathedral, located in the Roosevelt Row arts district, whose acoustics and scale are well suited to chamber and vocal repertoire.

“Haydn's music is endlessly inventive and deeply human,” said Erik Goldstrom, Music Director of Music at Trinity. “By offering ComposerFest as a free community experience, we invite audiences of all backgrounds to engage deeply with this music and with one another.”

The first program will focus on Haydn’s chamber music and will be performed by Urban Nocturnes, an ensemble founded by violinist Karen Sinclair and violist Christopher McKay. The program will feature selections for strings, piano, and winds, highlighting Haydn’s contributions to the development of chamber music forms. Additional performers on the program will include Melita Hunsinger (cello), Viviana Cumplido Wilson (flute), Olga Gorelik (piano), and Erin Finkelstein (clarinet).

The second concert will explore Haydn’s vocal and piano works and will feature members of Helios: A Modern Renaissance. The program will include selections from major works such as The Creation alongside lesser-known lieder and keyboard pieces. Pianist Sungmin Kim will join the ensemble for the performance.