Voices of Our Land: Dvořák “American” Quintet
America is, indeed, a musical confluence—a land of many traditions, cultures, and voices that merge to create something entirely new. From Dvoák’s “American” Quintet, influenced...
Reed College, Kaul Auditorium
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd, Portland, OR 97202Portland
Upcoming Shows
Jazz Notes: Gershwin Piano Concerto
Whether first or 10th-generation Americans, virtually all of us come from someplace else, carrying the heartbeat and soul of our ancestry. We express this in...
An Evening with Kit Armstrong: Liszt’s Pilgrimage
Pianist Kit Armstrong returns after his electrifying debut last summer with a recital that traces Franz Liszt’s idea of “home,” and how it was shaped...
CMNW Presents the Oregon Bach Festival: Celebratory Cantatas
In every culture and land, music is a part of special events. One of the great masters of celebratory music is none other than Johann...
An Evening with Chris Thile: Master of the Mandolin
Four-time Grammy Award-winning mandolinist, singer, songwriter, composer, and MacArthur Genius Grant Fellow, Chris Thile, returns to CMNW for the first time since his sold-out 2017...
Crossing Borders: Brahms Piano Quartet
Few things in our fractured world bring us together quite like music, connecting us with our shared humanity across borders and time.Premiered by Clara Schumann...
Souvenir: Tchaikovsky Sextet
Music can be a time-travel device or a teleportation machine. A chord progression might whisk you back a decade or two, like to a Tuesday...
Timeless Classics: Mozart Clarinet Quintet & “Rhapsody in Blue”
World-renowned clarinetist and CMNW Artistic Director Emeritus David Shifrin leads an incredible concert of soaring clarinet favorites. The evening begins with Mozart’s dazzling Clarinet Quintet,...
Universal Harmony: Schumann Piano Quintet
Our summer celebration of the many ways music brings together our shared voices—a confluence of history, culture, past, present, and future—concludes with three exultant jewels...
Review: STORM LARGE MAKES IT HOME at Portland Center Stage
by Krista Garver - June 18, 2026
Storm Large is back, and her new cabaret memoir explores what makes a home. Like all of us, she's still working it out, and the show is as raw and funny as her voice is powerful....
Review: THE ROOMMATE at Profile Theatre
by Krista Garver - June 17, 2026
Profile Theatre's THE ROOMMATE is a dark comedy that surprises, moves, and lingers, with knockout performances by Gail Dartez and Eleanor O'Brien. One week left, don't miss it....
Review: ARBUS & WEST at Triangle Productions
by Dawn Sellers - June 07, 2026
Performances that draw you in from the first exchange and hold you, off-balance, until the lights go down. ARBUS & WEST at Triangle Productions a must see about how women see themselves and others. On stage now through June 20th....
Review: MAMMA MIA! at Keller Auditorium
by Krista Garver - June 03, 2026
A jukebox musical based on the music of ABBA, MAMMA MIA! knows exactly what it is and makes absolutely no apologies for it. It’s fun!...
Review: KRISTINA WONG, #FOODBANKINFLUENCER at Portland Center Stage
by Krista Garver - June 02, 2026
What did our critic think of KRISTINA WONG, #FOODBANKINFLUENCER at Portland Center Stage?...
Review: ONCE UPON A MATTRESS at Broadway Rose
by Krista Garver - May 29, 2026
With music by Mary Rodgers and lyrics by Marshall Barer, ONCE UPON A MATTRESS is a comedic musical romp based on the fairy tale 'The Princess and the Pea.' The kingdom is in crisis: Queen Aggravain has decreed that no one may marry until her son, the sweet but hapless Prince Dauntless, weds first. A...
Review: X at Third Rail Repertory Theatre
by Krista Garver - May 28, 2026
X is not the type of show you sit back and enjoy. It will put you on edge, drag you into dark places, and leave you thinking for days. If you're the kind of theatergoer who considers that a feature rather than a bug, this one's for you....
Review: THE PAVILLION at 100 Lives Repertory
by Krista Garver - May 20, 2026
Now onstage at 100 Lives Repertory, THE PAVILION is a play about time – the Narrator will tell you so at the outset. It’s also a play about scope. Craig Wright's poetic script opens with the creation of the universe and narrows, with breathtaking precision, to the story of two people at their 20...
Review: THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL at Portland Playhouse
by Krista Garver - May 07, 2026
When I saw Portland Playhouse's 2025–2026 season announced, the show I was most irrationally excited about was THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL. I’m far from an expert on the SpongeBob SquarePants universe, but I've watched enough episodes to have completely fallen for the little yellow sponge in square pa...
Review: DOCTOR FAUSTUS at The Canon Shakespeare Company
by Krista Garver - May 07, 2026
You don't often get the chance to see DOCTOR FAUSTUS on stage. Christopher Marlowe's early 1600s masterwork is the ur-text of the Faustian bargain, the template for everything from the musical Damn Yankees to the Al Pacino-Keanu Reeves film The Devil's Advocate. And yet it rarely gets produced. Than...
Past Shows
FESTIVAL FINALE: Celestial Virtuosity
The stars align for the final concert of our Summer Festival celebrating Beethoven’s profound influence on the evolution of music. Messiaen’s transcendent Interstellar Call and Ravel’s heroic...
SOARING SOLOISTS: Clarinet, Cello & Piano
More than any previous composer, Beethoven challenged musicians to reach new heights, redefining musical virtuosity. Tonight’s program features soaring soloist masterworks, including Beethoven’s Cello Sonata...
FREE Open Rehearsal: JÖRG WIDMANN “180 Beats per Minute”
Go behind the scenes and observe CMNW’s world-class musicians working together to put the finishing touches on the music for upcoming performances. An informal Q&A...
KEYBOARD CONVERGENCE: Quintets, Quartets & Solos
Beethoven propelled the piano to the forefront of classical music, challenging both the instrument and pianists as never before. Bold and powerful, subtle and sublime,...
PREEMINENT PIANO: Beethoven, Ligeti & Goodyear
Four all-star performers take on three exceptionally thrilling works for their instruments! World-renowned horn master Radovan Vlatkovi tackles Ligeti’s devilishly difficult Horn Trio. Portland’s own...
INCANDESCENCE: Blazing Works by Joan Tower, Bartók & the “Kreutzer”
Few artists creating music today embody the passion and fire of Beethoven quite like America’s greatest living woman composer, the incomparable Joan Tower. From our...
MUSIC ON FIRE: Beethoven, Brahms & Fagerlund
Beethoven’s incendiary and revolutionary Grosse Fuge forever changed music. The almost incomprehensible genius of his “Great Fugue” has powered every genre of music since—from classical to jazz,...
FREE Open Rehearsal: JOHN LUTHER ADAMS World Premiere of “Prophecies of Fire”
Go behind the scenes and observe CMNW’s world-class musicians working together to put the finishing touches on the music for upcoming performances. An informal Q&A...
SPECIAL EVENT: World Premiere of “Prophecies of Fire”
Be among the first to experience Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Luther Adams’s final major work for chamber ensemble! Prophecies of Fire will be premiered by the mesmerizing...
FINALE CONCERT: 2024 Young Artist Institute
Come, be astounded, and witness the next generation of virtuoso musicians performing highlights of four Beethoven String Quartets, and four World Premieres of short Beethoven-inspired...
OPENING NIGHT: Beethoven, Brahms & Bunch!
Opening Night of CMNW’s 54th Summer Festival will be a not-to-be missed event celebrating Beethoven’s influence on the last two centuries of chamber music! Our...
FREE Open Rehearsal: BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 2 in D Major
Go behind the scenes and observe CMNW’s world-class musicians working together to put the finishing touches on the music for upcoming performances. An informal Q&A...
FESTIVAL FINALE: American Masterworks | Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
Our festival finale is an exciting celebration of the vitality of American music from the turn of the 20th century until today: native and folk...
Voices of the Soul featuring Fred Child | Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
Music can be an extraordinary expression of personal suffering, loneliness, loss, and ultimately triumph. The wild colors of Alexander Scriabin’s brilliant third piano sonata, the...
David Ludwig’s “The Anchoress” | Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
Rarely in one concert will you experience a string quartet with piano, a saxophone quartet, a woodwind quintet, and a poetic monodrama! Set to poetry...
Poetry in Music Conversation
We’ve partnered with Literary Arts for an entertaining and enlightening conversation with acclaimed composer David Serkin Ludwig, award-winning poet (and Oregon-native) Katie Ford, and moderated...
UNCOVERED Voices | Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
Exceptional musical partnerships from critically acclaimed albums headline this program. Artistic Director Gloria Chien and heralded clarinetist Anthony McGill are longtime recital partners, and the...
Emerson Quartet Farewell with Gloria Chien | Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
The Emerson Quartet’s powerful tone, extraordinary exploration of repertoire, and longevity have made it the most acclaimed chamber ensemble in the world. After 17 appearances...
Celebrating the Emerson Quartet with David Shifrin | Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
Hailed by Time Magazine as “America’s Greatest Quartet,” the nine-time Grammy Award-winning Emerson Quartet graces CMNW’s stage one last time in their farewell season. This not-to-be-missed evening...
CMNW Presents the Oregon Bach Festival: Magnificat | Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
Inspired by Bach’s 1723 move to Leipzig, the “imaginative and spontaneous” (The New York Times) Jos van Veldhoven leads the Oregon Bach Festival Period Orchestra...
Festival Finale: Love & Transformation
Our festival concludes with stories of love and transformation through the deeply expressive music of Strauss and Schoenberg. Written at the turn of the century,...
Shades of Impressionism
Before the emergence of the Impressionists, French composers Debussy, Chausson, and Franck introduced a new sound of vibrant brushstrokes. Mezzo-soprano Fleur Barrons alluring voice, with...
Sinta Saxophone Quartet: American Voices
The acclaimed Sinta Quartet is on a mission to bring the versatility, unique sound, and excitement of the saxophone to audiences everywhere. Immerse yourself in...
Dawn Upshaw & Brentano Quartet: “Dido Reimagined”
Internationally renowned soprano Dawn Upshaw and the Brentano Quartet join forces to explore the Renaissance world of Henry Purcells beloved opera Dido & Aeneas. Librettist...
Eastern Inspirations
Eastern musical traditions have had a profound and exciting impact on classical music. Experience Japanese-inspired music by Ravel, the Persian and Balinese flavors of Henry...
Colors of Debussy & Crumb
Claude Debussy and American trailblazer George Crumb are masters of creating vibrant sonic kaleidoscopes. Debussy captures all the color, light, and emotion of an Impressionist...
Viennese Wunderkinds
Before his Hollywood fame, a young Erich Korngold was hailed in Vienna as the Mozart of the 20th century. He wrote his thrillingly virtuosic and...
Slavic Scenes
When it comes to capturing the colors of human emotion, few do so more profoundly than Eastern European composers! String masterpieces by Sergei Prokofiev, Anton...
English Expressions
Elgars bold tunes, striking color effects, and epic themes capture all the expanse and exhilaration of the English countryside. Then, our 2022 Protg Composer Alistair...
Folk Ingenuity
English composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor was one of the first and most passionate advocates of incorporating the unique voice of African and American spiritual traditions into...
Opening Night Celebration
Kick off your summer with some of CMNWs most beloved musicians David Shifrin, Jennifer Frautschi, Fred Sherry, Paul Neubauer, Gloria Chien, and more with this...
Videos
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The Words Will Come Shaking the Tree Theatre (6/04-6/28) |
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Jack Johnson at Hayden Homes Amphitheater Hayden Homes Amphitheater (9/27-9/27) |
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Sound Of Music Keller Auditorium (5/11-5/16) |
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Young Artist Institute Solo Showcase #2 The Old Church Concert Hall (6/26-6/26) |
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Pink Martini Britt Festival Pavilion & Gardens (9/03-9/03) |
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DAPPERLESQUE: (PRIDE EDITION) A Gender Bending Burlesque Cabaret Alberta Rose Theatre (6/27-6/27) |
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RENT Twilight Theater Company (12/03-12/20) |
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Booklover's Burlesque: Banned Books Edition Alberta Rose Theatre (7/25-7/25) |
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FREE COMMUNITY CONCERT with Soovin Kim, Kenji Bunch & Monica Ohuchi Chehalem Cultural Center (7/10-7/10) |
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A Midsummer Night’s Dream Oregon Shakespeare Festival (3/13-10/25) |
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