Beethoven Festival/Park City Chamber Music Society

A nonprofit organization

$10,745 raised

43% complete

$25,000 Goal


On July 1, 2023, Utah's longest-running year-round classical music festival began it's landmark 40th season

40 years - over 875 live concerts   




Outstanding classical solo artists share with you their superb virtuoso playing,
bringing to life treasures by your favorite composers. 

Your donations support the Festival favorite Artist Showcase Concerts at wonderful intimate venues including the Park City Community Church, Emma Eccles Jones Recital Hall in Salt Lake City and the popular free  Chamber Music in City Park summer concerts with Mountain Town Music. 

The Beethoven Festival Online Series features beautiful performances free for all and shares Park City worldwide as a wonderful cultural destination. The Festival produces its online programs from live concerts recorded in Park City over the years, so we reach both our "at home" audience here and beyond Park City.

Outreach throughout the year
We love performing these outreach concerts. We take our finest classical programs into senior living facilities, schools, libraries and hospitals throughout the year.











         online BEETHOVEN FESTIVAL ONLINE PREMIERES
          Available to enjoy free online, anytime.
         

Violinist Dara Morales, pianist Michael Gurt, cellist Denise Djokic and clarinetist Russell Harlow

   
Enhancing Park City and Utah as Cultural Destination
The Festival represents Park City and Utah. The same week the Utah Symphony performed in Carnegie Hall, the Beethoven Festival was featured in a concert in NY on one of New York's most popular chamber music series: The Bargemusic Series.



THE DIRECTORS
Russell and Leslie Harlow
Clarinetist Russell Harlow is recognized as one of the nation's top solo and chamber music clarinetists. He performs for international clarinet festivals and on performance series worldwide. Starting clarinet at age 11 and fascinated with classical music, Harlow studied first with top Hollywood studio clarinetist Gary Foster and later with famed clarinetist Mitchell Lurie at USC where Russell Harlow began his career in chamber music. He attended master classes, was coached by the great cellist Gregor Piatigorsky, and, at age 21, won his position with the Utah Symphony. He founded Nova Chamber Music Series, Utah's first forum for resident musicians and invited guest artists. He studied summers at the Tanglewood Festival with Boston Symphony clarinetist Harold Wright and at California's Claremont Festival, where he met and sought coaching with virtuoso violinist Charles Libove. Upon joining the Beethoven Festival, he invited Charles Libove and recital partner Nina Lugovoy to join the Festival roster, bringing them to Park City for nearly 20 years to perform with the Beethoven Festival. Russell concentrates year-round on solo and chamber music performance, recording and directing the year-round Beethoven Festival concerts and outreach presentations. The Harlows make their home in Park City, the community they love.

Leslie Harlow, the Festival founder and director for 39 years, who passed away on February 25th, 2023, is still the inspiration for the Festival.  It is her vision and drive that has created the quality that the Park City Beethoven Festival is famous for.

While finishing her masters degree at the Juilliard School, violist Leslie (Blackburn) Harlow was a top finalist in the school's concerto competition. She was accepted to compete in the Munich International Competition when she was also invited by the Utah Symphony to spend that same summer performing with the orchestra. Leslie had already fallen in love with Park City while on a her first-ever ski trip the year before. Opting out of Munich, she chose Utah instead and spent the summer touring Utah with the Symphony. She was so inspired by the natural beauty of the state and with the Utah's great support of the arts, following graduation, she moved here. Having performed and taught at a number of chamber music festivals, Leslie saw Utah, and particularly Park City, as the ideal chamber music festival home. Leslie Harlow approached Deer Valley Resort and Kimball Arts Center to host the concerts, Deer Valley Lodging for housing and Western Airlines for flights for the artists. She gathered together the fine musicians she had performed with, friends from Juilliard and New York City and new colleagues here in Utah, inviting them to perform together at the Deer Valley Chamber Music Festival. The Festival continues today as Utah's longest-running classical music festival.


Organization Data

Summary

Organization name

Beethoven Festival/Park City Chamber Music Society

other names

Originally the Deer Valley Chamber Music Festival, formerly the Park City International Music Festival

Tax id (EIN)

87-0466931

Categories

Arts & Culture

Address

1420 MEADOW LOOP RD
PARK CITY, UT 84098

Phone

801-671-3461

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