interlude SOMA QUARTET Every other year for the past eighteen years, residents of the Eastern Shore have participated in the International Chamber Music Competition and will have the chance to do it again the weekend of April 4 and 5. No, we don’t play musical instruments for 45 minutes before a panel of judges in hopes of winning one of the prizes. Instead, we make up an enthusiastic audience, letting the young musicians know that we support their efforts to launch musical careers that will enrich their lives and those of so many others. st s Based in Bloomington, Soma was formed at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music under the guidance of Otis Murphy. In addition to being the grand prize winners at the 2019 Plowman Chamber Music Competition, they were fi rst runner-up in the 2018 Classic Alive Young Artist Competition, fi rst prize winners in the 2017 Chicago Woodwind Ensemble Competition, and fi nalists in the 2018 North American Saxophone Alliance Quartet Competition. Since their formation in 2016, they have performed at a wide variety of venues, including the International Navy Band Symposium, the inaugural American Single Reed Summit, and the North American Saxophone Alliance region fi ve conference. The ensemble is committed to performing new works to expand quartet repertoire and has collaborated with several composers from Indiana University. Soma also has a passion for traditional repertoire and transcriptions and has performed numerous outreach concerts in venues ranging from retirement centers to coffee shops to the Bloomington Transit Center, all in hopes of bringing saxophone to a wider audience. In 2020, they will perform a Mendelssohn Quartet transcription at the Odyssey Chamber Music Series in Missouri. 410-819-0380 Attending the concerts throughout the day, fi lling out the audience survey cards, and waiting anxiously for the winners to be announced are the ways we affi rm how important these performers are to the future of serious music. The next day, after the drama of the competition, the musicians honor us with encore performances throughout the community. In some ways, I fi nd this to be the best part of the weekend as these young players, now relaxed, share their joy for their music, their instruments, and each other. Susan and I will be at the Avalon all day Saturday and at one of the Sunday performances as well. Join us in support of young musicians. Barry Koh President, Chesapeake Music 5
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