Eureka Chamber Music Series

The mission of the Eureka Chamber Music Series (ECMS) is to enrich the cultural landscape of the North Coast by bringing diverse, world-class musicians for concerts and free educational outreach to schools and general community.  Our artists include Grammy award and prestigious music competition winners who come from across the United States and as far away as London and Paris.  In 2024 and 2026 we created a unique educational opportunity for five local high schools and middle schools by hosting one of our nation's leading string quartets and music educators, the Arianna String Quartet, for a one week residency.  This immersive program consisted of coaching sessions and performance seminars, culminating in public concerts of over 80 students in each performance led by the Arianna String Quartet!  In 2025 ECMS sponsored another week's residency with the Balourdet Quartet performing in hospital lobbies and the county library as well as educational outreach and performances within high schools and middle schools.  Future goals for ECMS include expansion of community outreach events for underserved areas of the North Coast, more residency programs within schools, and hosting a music festival to bring audiences from out of the area to our community.

The Eureka Chamber Music Series (ECMS) is launching our first ever Summer Music Festival in July of 2026. The festival will include nine musical events over the course of eight days, performed by nine world-class musicians from New York, Boston, Seattle, and San Francisco. 

Events being presented at the festival include:

• A community music jam session combining professional musicians with amateur community musicians, free and open to the public

• Bach under the Canopy, two free concerts under the redwoods in Eureka and Arcata featuring the music of one of history’s most spiritual composers, Johann Sebastian Bach

• The performance of three World Premiere compositions by composer-in-residence Elena Ruehr, including a public conversation about what inspires her to write music

• Two Mainstage Concerts and one Concert & Conversation in Eureka

• Two Mainstage Concerts and a concert and demonstration in Arcata, featuring priceless instruments from the 17th and 18th centuries made by Stradivarius, Guarneri and Amati 

The festival will feature the rising star Balourdet String Quartet, who had their Carnegie Hall debut in December, and are the winners of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant. Other performers include the superb cellist Sophie Shao and composer-in-residence Elena Ruehr, whose music has been described as, “sumptuously scored and full of soaring melodies” (The New York Times), and “unspeakably gorgeous” (Gramophone). 

As with most arts organizations, ticket sales only cover a small portion of our costs. Your sponsorship helps to underwrite our concert expenses, as well as expand our educational outreach and inspire the next generation of musicians and classical music lovers. Please consider joining us in bringing world class performances to everyone who values music in our community!

FREE EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH TO SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY:

Eureka Chamber Music Series created a unique educational opportunity for five local high schools and middle schools by hosting one of our nation's leading string quartets and music educators, the Arianna String Quartet, for a one week residency.  This immersive program consisted of coaching sessions and performance seminars, culminating in public concerts of over 80 students in each performance led by the Arianna String Quartet.  Additionally, ECMS sponsored another week's residency with the Balourdet Quartet, performing in various community locations such as hospital lobbies and the county library as well as educational outreach and performances within high schools and middle schools. These events reached over 600 students! 

Future goals for ECMS include expansion of community outreach events to include underserved areas of the North Coast and to provide more residency programs within our local schools.  Your generous donation will support ECMS in continuing to provide these culturally rich opportunities at no cost to our community and students.