University of North Carolina School of the Arts Celebrates 20 Years of Watson Hall

The school’s chamber music festival concerts on March 19 and 23, 2024, will mark the 20th anniversary of its premiere concert venue

The School of Music at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) is presenting the spring edition of its Chamber Music Festival this March to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its Watson Hall venue. 

Tune in to The Violin Channel on March 23 to watch one of the Chamber Music Festival concerts LIVE with pianist Pavel Nersessian Nersessian and Los Angeles Philharmonic’s principal cellist Robert deMaine. The pair will perform Haydn’s Trio in G Major, Mozart’s Piano Quartet in G Minor, and the Brahms Piano Quartet in G Minor — alongside student musicians Ellie Dixon, Donovan Vega, Eric Hoang, Sophie Anderson, and Joshua Forbes.

On March 19, an additional program will feature the Brahms Clarinet Quintet with Skene and faculty members Ida Bieler and Jordan Bak, with students Ruslan Usaev and Gustavo Antoniacomi. The Elgar Piano Quintet will include viola students Gabriel Mendoza and Arina Komarova with faculty members Kevin Lawrence, Brooks Whitehouse, and Dmitri Shteinberg.

In addition to rehearsing and performing, Nersessian and deMaine will also be giving master classes throughout the week. 

“The Chamber Music Festival at UNCSA has highlighted a variety of chamber repertoire over its four years — from new and contemporary works to those well-loved works that have stood the test of time,” Vorobiev said in the press release. “The spring programs highlights some of the latter; these are works that are full of drama and will keep audiences on the edge of their seat. In my opinion, it is impossible to get tired of this music.”

Now in its fourth year, the UNCSA Chamber Music Festival was founded in 2021 by faculty members and artistic directors Ida Bieler and Dmitri Vorobiev, who continue to lead the programming.

Named for Bill and Judy Watson, the Watson Chamber Music Hall was completed in 2003 and holds 300 seats. Designed by Calloway Johnson Moore & West with the acoustical engineering firm Acentech and consultant Rein Pirn, the hall’s shape and coloring mimic those of a violin. In 2018, the hall was supplied with state-of-the-art cameras and a streaming system to capture live any type of concert or event in the space.