Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival 2026

Philip Glass Violin Concerto No. 2 “The American Four Seasons”
Daniel Rowland (solo violin)

Interval

Maurice Ravel La Valse for String Nonet arr. Tim Mulleman
Paul Dukas The Sorcerer’s Apprentice

The opening concert of SICMF will be a razzmatazz affair with dancers and fashion featuring violinists Miclen LaiPang Miriam Helms, Suzanne Martens and Farida Bacharova violist Mikhail Zemtsov, cellists David Cohen and Peter Martens and double bass virtuoso Zoran Markovic et al. "The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” made famous by the Walt Disney Classic “Fantasia” will feature a full symphony orchestra comprising SICMF faculty and students, conducted by both Michael Repper and Karen Hendrickson.

W.A. Mozart Quintet for Piano and Winds
Titus Underwood (oboe), YaoGuang Zhai (clarinet), Julia (bassoon), José (horn), Pieter Grobler (piano).
Fasil Say Space Jump
Daniel Rowland (violin), Maja Bogdanovic (cello), Nina Schumann (piano).

Interval

César Franck Piano Quintet

Mozart’s sublime writing for wind instruments and piano is the perfect example of Viennese Classicism juxtaposed with Fasil Say’s Jump, a wonderful example of contemporary Impressionism by one of the most excentric concert pianist composers alive.

Gareth Wood Tientos y Danzas for Brass
Felix Mendelssohn String Quintet No.1
Miriam Helms (violin 1), Miclen LaiPang (violin 2), Mikhail Zemtsov (viola 1), Dana Zemtsov (viola 2), Peter Martens (cello)

Interval

B. Bartók Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion

Gareth Wood’s Tientos y Danzas is a typical example of his sparkling brass writing style. Amongst others, this performance will feature Marco Silva on trumpet, Mark Hampton on bass trombone and Jauvon Gilliam on percussion. Bartok’s unmistakable rhythmical idiom imbued with elements of folk music will be performed by pianists, Nina Schumann and Emanuil Ivanov with Gilliam on percussion again.

John Corigliano Voyage for string orchestra
Owen Dalton A Tough Tale
Tereska Muishond - narrator
Xandi van Dijk - conductor

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Johannes Brahms Clarinet Quintet, Op. 115 for strings

Daniel Rowland (violin 1), Farida Bacharova (violin 2), Mikhail Zemtsov (viola 1), Dana Zemtsov (viola 2), Maja Bogdanovic (cello)

John Cogliano is an award-winning American composer with no fewer than five Grammy Awards to his name. His atmospheric Voyage for string orchestra is not to be missed. Owen Dalton’s World Premiere will feature a large symphony orchestra giving aural colour and texture to the writings of three iconic South African poets.

Amanda Harberg Lucas’s Garden
YaoGuang Zhai (clarinet), Daniel Rowland (violin), Boris Andrianov (cello), Nina Schumann (piano)
Anton Arensky Piano Quintet
Siwoo Kim (violin 1), Miriam Helms (violin 2), Xandi van Dijk (viola), Peter Martens (cello), Pieter Grobler (piano)

Interval

Jörg Widmann String Quartet no.8, “Beethoven-Studie III”
Miclen LaiPang (violin 1), Daniel Rowland (violin 2), Dana Zemtsov (viola), David Cohen (cello)

With echoes of Brahms and Copland, Harberg’s Lucas’s Garden paints a vivid, blossoming landscape. Arensky’s Piano Quintet is a rich Romantic work, while Widmann’s quartet offers a bold, modern homage to Beethoven.

Erwin Schulhoff Five pieces for String Quartet
Oli Mustonen Sextet

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Reinhold Glière String Octet

Erwin Schulhoff’s five character miniatures from the 1920s, and Glière’s Octet, another Russian Romantic masterpiece features amongst others string faculty members, violinists Daniel Rowland, Miclen LaiPang, Siwoo Kim, Suzanne Martens, Farida Bacharova and cellist Boris Adrianov. Mustonen’s sextet is a wind showcase with Demarre McGill (flute), Titus Underwood (oboe), YaoGuang Zhai (clarinet), Julia Harguidey (bassoon), José Garcia (horn) and Emanuil Ivanov (piano).

Aaron Copland Quiet City for Trumpet and English Horn
Titus Underwood-English horn Marco Silva - trumpet
Niccolo Paganini Sonata per la Grand Viola
MIkhail Zemtsov-viola
Ante Grgin Concertino
YaoGuang Zhai-solo clarinet Michael Repper - conductor

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Claude T Smith Fantasia for Alto Saxophone and Wind Orchestra
Liam Burden-saxophone
Pavel Karmanov Musica con Cello
Boris Adrianov-cello

SICMF Concert 7 is the concertante evening featuring virtuoso works performed by SICMF faculty in varied chamber orchestra formations. The ensemble changes between pieces and includes almost all 2026 faculty alongside top student participants, showcasing the festival’s collaborative artist

Festival Symphony Orchestra

Michael Repper - conductor


Gabriela Oritz Antropolis
Alfred Schnittke Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, No. 1
David Cohen - cello

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Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 1, “Titan”

Gabriela Oritz Antropolis depicts the music of Mexico City through its legendary dance halls and bars with the full colour palette of the symphony orchestra. Schnittke’s cello concerto is a work of gravitas and epic proportion where the influence of Dimitri Shostakovich can clearly be heard. Mahler’s first symphony is also a grand and vast work, showcasing the orchestra and all its facets.

Festival Symphonic Wind Orchestra
Liam Burden - conductor
Phillip Sparke Orient Express
Eric Whitacre October
Paul Heart Cartoon

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Lize Briel From Blues to Orangey Hues
Martin Elerby Paris Sketches

The Festival Symphonic Wind Orchestra is a new addition to the SICMF stable. The orchestra was created to showcase the vast numbers of woodwind and brass students in repertoire specifically written for them. The eclectic FSWO programme features music from both the concert band and symphonic wind ensemble repertoire incorporating atmospheric landscape depictions to music from the silver screen.

Festival Concert Orchestra
Karin Hendrickson - conductor
Pyotr Tchaikovsky Swan Lake Suite, No. 1, Scene
Max Bruch Violin Concerto, No. 1
Siwoo Kim - violin

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George Bizet Carmen Prelude & Suite Excerpts

Tchaikovsky’s brilliant orchestration and gift for melody are both on display in the music he wrote for the ballet, Swan Lake. Continuing in the Romantic idiom is the much loved first violin concerto by Max Bruch. The FCO returns to the ballet/opera house stage after interval for music from Bizet’s Carmen, one of the most popular French operas ever written.

Festival Symphony Orchestra
Michael Repper - conductor
Gabriela Oritz Antropolis
Felix Mendelssohn Concerto for Violin, Piano and Orchestra
Miclen LaiPang – violin
Emanuil Ivanov – piano

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Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 1, “Titan”

Gabriela Oritz Antropolis depicts the music of Mexico City through its legendary dance halls and bars with the full colour palette of the symphony orchestra. Mendelssohn’s concerto for violin and piano is full of effervescent charm. It stems from his early teenage years and reflects the child prodigy genius that he was. Mahler’s first symphony is a grand and vast work, showcasing the orchestra and all its facets.