RSVP for Summer Chamber Music Workshop

media release: Madison Bach Musicians’ Summer Chamber Music Workshop offers a unique opportunity for amateur musicians—from age 13 to well into their 90s—to immerse themselves in chamber music study and performance. Participants engage in extensive ensemble playing, along with informative lectures, technique classes, and larger group ensembles. Our musical focus is early music from the Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical periods.

The mission of the workshop is to create a vibrant community where chamber music enthusiasts come together for an intensive week of music-making under the guidance of highly skilled faculty. Participants enjoy daily chamber ensemble coaching from supportive instructors. We challenge our musicians with high artistic standards while fostering growth in collaborative playing for both enjoyment and fulfillment.

In addition, our faculty members are experts in early music performance practice and delight in incorporating stylistic, historical, and technical knowledge into their teaching. We believe that playing together with informed performance practice brings the greatest musical satisfaction.

What’s New This Year?

A New Venue

We are excited to announce a new home for the workshop: Holy Wisdom Monastery, located on Highway M in Middleton, just north of Madison. Holy Wisdom offers overnight accommodations for out-of-town participants (arranged and paid directly through Holy Wisdom and not included in tuition). We are thrilled that this special space will host us for the week. Renowned for its “incredible” achievement in land restoration, Holy Wisdom was featured in The New York Times in September 2025. People from across the country visit this peaceful monastery for personal retreats, and I am deeply grateful for our partnership with Holy Wisdom this year.

Returning Guest Faculty

We are delighted to welcome back harpsichordist JungHae Kim from San Francisco. JungHae previously taught at our workshop in 2019 and now serves on the faculty at Stanford University and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. We look forward to her sharing her artistry and insight as both teacher and performer this summer.

New Class Offerings

We are also pleased to introduce a new class taught by Sean Kleve, titled “The Art of Good Rhythm and Timing in a Chamber Group.” In this class, Sean will explore rhythm as a fundamental musical skill, with particular emphasis on its essential role in ensemble playing.

Geoffrey Williams will be offering “Bohemian Polyphony: an exploration of ensemble singing and playing through the lens of the late 15th- and early 16th-century Codex Speciàlnik or ‘special songbook’ from Prague."  This class is open to all voices and instruments.  This collection of sacred music in 2-4 parts includes both rarities and familiar names like Josquin, Tinctoris, and Compere.

Based on your requests for more personal practice and rehearsal time, we encourage you to sign up for as many or as few afternoon classes as you’d like to focus on improving your skills.

I cannot wait to welcome you to our workshop week and see all these exciting elements come together. Spaces will fill up fast, so don’t wait to register!

$475 – Complete workshop (9 AM – 5 PM, Tuesday – Friday, including ensembles, classes, lunch, and evening faculty concert)

$275 – Half days only (mornings or afternoons, lunch not included)

$100 – Large group ensemble

$90 – Lunch and snacks purchased separately for part-time participants

$25 – Faculty Concert, July 9, 7:30 PM

Tuition is $475 (full workshop) and $275 (half day) before April 15 and rises to $500 and $300, respectively afterwards, due upon registration. Registration for the full workshop, including the morning chamber music ensembles, closes May 1. We welcome groups that are preformed in addition to individuals that wish to be placed in groups. If you are an individual who is registering for a chamber ensemble, please send a two to five minute sample of your playing for placement to Kangwon Kim at kangwonleekim@gmail.com unless you have participated in the past. Because significant amounts of time and effort go into placing participants into suitable ensemble groups, a cancellation fee of $60 will apply. No tuition refunds are available after June 1. You may enroll in half day afternoon classes and large afternoon ensembles until June 30.