Oyster Bay Music Festival To Perform This Summer

The Oyster Bay Music Festival (OBMF) is set to return this summer from June 27-July 4. This summer will feature 12 performances in 10 different venues along the Gold Coast of Long Island. The festival will appear in the towns of Oyster Bay, Manhasset, Roslyn, Cold Spring Harbor, Old Westbury and Huntington. These beautiful venues allow the community to come alive with classical music and inspire community among its participants.

The opening night concert is in Manhasset at the Unitarian Congregation at Shelter Rock on June 27 at 7 p.m. “The Romantics” will feature a program of mostly Romantic Era music filled with virtuoso instrumentalists, chamber music masterpieces, and favorite vocal arias. World-class performers – almost all in their twenties – include National Symphony Orchestra Flutist and Long Island native Matthew Ross; French/Viennese bassist Marc-André, who is redefining the possibilities of the bass and reaching millions of people through social media: virtuoso bassoonist Eleni Katz, who recently won the prestigious Concert Artist Guild Auditions; Soprano and activist Teddy Siegel, founder of the infamous bathroom account Got2GoNYC; and celebrated pianist Maxim Lando, who has been lauded by the New York Times for his “brilliance and infectious exuberance.” The concert will also feature the popular OBMF Singers, additional prize-winning instrumentalists, and an appearance from one of the few musical-saw masters remaining in the world, Dale Stuckenbruck. Music selections will include works by Brahms, Glinka, Fanny Mendelssohn, Debussy, and much more. This is truly a concert not to be missed. The concert is free and open to all. Donations are encouraged and happily accepted.

Thirteen years ago, the music festival started as a grassroots project that aimed to educate young musicians and give them the opportunity to perform. As its audience began to grow and develop, the festival itself did as well. Returning this year are many performers that are young, local Long Island musicians that grew up attending the OBMF. Despite the fact that many of them have their own budding careers—including prizes, awards and international recognition—the return of these musicians proves how important community cultivation is at the festival.

The music festival focuses on primarily classical music, though it approaches these traditional pieces in a new and fresh way. Co-Director Pippa Borisy explains that the Oyster Bay Music Festival provides a “kaleidoscope concert.” With the incorporation of string and brass instruments, as well as vocal performances, the musicians at the OBMF display a range of styles and techniques. Additionally, different types of performances are designed to make the event accessible to those who are unfamiliar with classical music. Audiences have the ability to attend ensemble, solo, duet and trio performances in a single concert thanks to the festival’s design. This “variety show,” provides a great range for audience members to experience diverse performances.

Many of the musicians featured in the concert series are Long Island natives. Internationally-celebrated pianist Maxim Lando is from Great Neck, the Zandieh Trio brothers are Juilliard-trained musicians from Oyster Bay, soprano Teddy Siegel is from Lloyd Harbor and several others are also from the area. Their return to the festival is a testament to how supportive the local music community is on Long Island.