City: The newly formed Manhattan Chamber Players is a chamber music collective of New York-based musicians who share the common aim of performing the greatest works in the chamber repertoire at the highest level. Its members come from the tradition of great music making at the Marlboro Music Festival, Steans Institute at Ravinia, Music@Menlo, Yellow Barn Chamber Music Festival and Perlman Music Program, and are former students of the Curtis Institute, Juilliard School, Colburn School, New England Conservatory, and Yale School of Music. Formed by musicians who have been performing together since they were students, at the core of the Manhattan Chamber Players’ inspiration is the joy in playing this richly varied repertoire with longtime friends and colleagues. Building upon that foundation, new works commissioned from its composer members keep the ensemble firmly grounded in the music of both the past and present. Its roster allows for the possibility of programming the entire string and piano chamber music repertoire, from piano duos to string octets. While all its members have independent careers as soloists and chamber musicians, they strive for every opportunity to come together and again share in this special collaboration.
Members of the Manhattan Chamber Players are current and former members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, ACJW, and the Amphion, Attacca, Dover, Escher, and Ying Quartets, and the Lysander and Sheridan Piano Trios. They are prizewinners in the Banff, Concert Artists Guild, Fischoff, Melbourne, Naumburg, Osaka, Primrose, Queen Elisabeth, Rubenstein, Tchaikovsky, Tertis, and Young Concert Artists Competitions, and are some of the most sought after solo and chamber performers of their generation. During its inaugural season, in addition to a Le Poisson Rouge debut in New York and numerous concerts across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, the Manhattan Chamber Players will be the Ensemble-in-Residence at both the Northern Lights Music Festival in Mexico and the Crescent City Chamber Music Festival in New Orleans.