National Music Festival ~ 10th Anniversary Year

The National Music Festival transforms Kent County into a hub of music. The nationally recognized event will feature music to suit virtually every taste -- from symphonies and chamber music to hints of jazz. More than 30 concerts and over 200 open rehearsals are scheduled throughout the festival in venues across the Eastern Shore.

The National Music Festival, in Historic Chestertown on Maryland's Eastern Shore, brings together world-class mentors and gifted apprentice musicians on the cusp of their professional careers. The two groups rehearse and perform together throughout Kent County in orchestral and chamber repertoire. All rehearsals are free and open to the public. Some concerts are free; others require a ticket. From a solo violinist to full symphony orchestra concerts, from Beethoven to hints of jazz — the festival will feature music to suit virtually every taste.

It will be an exciting season, including riveting music by Beethoven, Gershwin, Mendelssohn, Strauss, and Tchaikovsky. Several mentors will be featured as concerto soloists, among them guitarist Camilo Carrara (Vivaldi, “Concerto for Lute in D”), Emily Daggett Smith (Mendelssohn, "Concerto for Violin in e"), and Natalie Helm (Saint-Saens, "Concerto for Violoncello No.1").