Introducing CMS Front Row
May 14, 2020
The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center announces CMS Front Row, eight weeks of free, curated, at-home programming beginning May 17.
The Artist Series, an HD digital concert series comprised of live performance video from the CMS archive, highlights the artistry of Michael Brown, Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung, Gloria Chien, Gilbert Kalish, Cho-Liang Lin, Anne-Marie McDermott, David Shifrin, and Arnaud Sussmann. The concerts will be broadcast on Sundays at 5:00 pm from May 17 through July 5. In addition to the performance footage, each concert will open with an introductory interview offering audiences a personal look into the artists’ lives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hosted by CMS co-Artistic Directors David Finckel and Wu Han, each concert will also include visual program notes and end with a live Q&A with the featured artist. Artist Series streams will be available on the CMS website and social media channels for 72 hours. Audience questions for the live Q&A may be submitted prior to the weekly broadcast on social media or during the concert on the CMS website.
The new series was announced by CMS Executive Director Suzanne Davidson.
“Since gathering safely together is still not possible due to the pandemic, we are thrilled to be able to sustain audiences of this beautiful art form in a meaningful, joyful, and innovative way. Our audiences will have a front row seat to CMS from the comfort and safety of their own homes. Viewers will have the best of both worlds. They will enjoy personal engagement with the artists during the introductory video and live Q&A, both recorded from the artists’ homes, and also a curated concert with HD quality sound and performance recorded in our halls, a musical experience which is not possible to achieve through recording in musicians’ homes. Engaging with this great art form and artists at the highest level is the perfect antidote to our necessary social distancing.”
"Central to our mission has been the development of one of the world's greatest public archives of recorded chamber music performances. This is the moment when those recordings truly serve as musical life blood which can keep us all connected, inspired, and aware of what rich resources, artistic and human, comprise the essence of CMS,” David Finckel and Wu Han explained. “It was natural for us to begin CMS's digital concerts with programs focused on our extraordinary artists. These events, combining music and discussion, will bring selected performers in sharp focus to audiences’ screens around the world. It has already been heartening for us, as we work on these productions, to come face to face with our artists again and to experience their masterful playing."
In addition to the Artist Series, CMS also introduces a new family video series for at-home viewing from May 22 to July 10, InspectorPulse@Home. CMS’s Resident Lecturer and Director of Family Programs Bruce Adolphe will reprise his role as Inspector Pulse, the comedic “private ear” who leads children through the fundamentals of music making and performing in Meet the Music programs at Alice Tully Hall. CMS invites children to join Inspector Pulse for a short music lesson and digital Q&A on Fridays at 11:00 am on CMS’s Facebook page. Shortly after the Facebook premiere, the videos will also be available for on-demand streaming on the CMS website with accompanying activities and a learning guide. To submit a question to the Q&A, children may share their questions in the comments below the Facebook video. A limited number of questions will be answered in subsequent episodes.