The Vermont Mozart Festival is a series of indoor and outdoor concerts presented annually at sites throughout the state of
Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
. First held in 1974, the festival primarily focuses on the works of
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
. In 2010 the original Vermont Mozart Festival disbanded and dissolved; however, 2015 violinist Michael Dabroski announced a new Vermont Mozart Festival, Inc. and programs with its Title Sponsor
NBT Bank, the City of South Burlington, and partnerships with community supporters, including Burlington Country Club, South Burlington Rotary Club, and others. In 2016, Vermont Mozart Festival planned to produce many all-Mozart concert events year-round, including a summer series of outdoor concerts and a three-week summer Fellowship Program for thirty awardees.
History
The Festival was founded in 1974 by
Melvin Kaplan, oboist and teacher at
Juilliard
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...
, in collaboration with conductor William Metcalfe and the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...
. The first season featured all-Mozart performances at the UVM Show Barn,
Shelburne Farms
Shelburne Farms is a nonprofit education center for sustainability, working farm, and National Historic Landmark on the shores of Lake Champlain in Shelburne, Vermont. The property is nationally significant as a well-preserved example of a Gilde ...
, Royall Tyler Theatre,
Robert Hull Fleming Museum
The Fleming Museum of Art is a museum of art and anthropology at the University of Vermont in Burlington. The museum's collection includes some 25,000 objects from a wide variety of eras and places. Until 2014, the museum was known as the Robert ...
, St. Paul's Cathedral, and aboard the S.S. Champlain. Notably, the Shelburne Farms concert marked the first time that the site was opened for a public event. In all, ten concerts were held over two weeks; every concert sold out. The following season, the Festival's format was expanded to include 15 concerts and three workshops. This format remained mostly unchanged for rest of the Festivals 37 years, though in 2006 the Festival presented 19 concerts. The Festival performed more than 3,000 pieces in over 50 locations, including at least 278 of Mozart's 626 works—possibly more than any other festival or concert series in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
The Festival was incorporated as a non-profit organization in late 1976; the first full board of directors was assembled in early 1977. Following a successful fundraising campaign, the Festival achieved national recognition when
CBS Sunday Morning
''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (normally shortened to ''Sunday Morning'' on the program itself since 2009) is an American news magazine television program that has aired on CBS since January 28, 1979. Created by Robert Northshield and original host ...
filmed a week of concerts on location. A series of winter concerts began in 1978, and by 1979 the Festival was firmly established, drawing praise from the ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', ''
Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'', ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'', and ''
Montreal Star
''The Montreal Star'' was an English-language Canadian newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It closed in 1979 in the wake of an eight-month pressmen's strike.
It was Canada's largest newspaper until the 1950s and remained the dominan ...
''. In 1983, the complete Winter Series was recorded by
National Public Radio
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...
and aired on
Performance Today
''Performance Today'' is a Peabody Award-winning classical music radio program, first aired in 1987 and hosted since 2000 by Fred Child. It is the most listened-to daily classical music radio program in the United States, with 1.2 million liste ...
. In 1984, the Festival presented its first concert on the meadow of the
Trapp Family
The Trapp Family (also known as the von Trapp Family) were a singing group formed from the family of former Austrian naval commander Georg von Trapp. The family achieved fame in their original singing career in their native Austria during the i ...
Lodge in
Stowe, Vermont
Stowe is a town in Lamoille County, Vermont, United States. The population was 5,223 at the 2020 census. The town lies on Vermont Routes 108 and 100. It is nicknamed "The Ski Capital of the East" and is home to Stowe Mountain Resort, a ski faci ...
, which quickly became, along with Shelburne Farms, one of the Festival's two largest and most popular concert sites. In the 2000s, all concerts on the Trapp meadow were followed by
fireworks
Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...
displays.
Traditions
* The Grand Opening Concert of the Summer Festival was preceded by a
classical dressage
Classical dressage evolved from cavalry movements and training for the battlefield, and has since developed into the competitive dressage seen today. Classical riding is the art of riding in harmony with, rather than against, the horse.
Correct c ...
exhibition.
* The Summer Festival concluded with Mozart's ''
Ave verum Corpus
"" is a short Eucharistic chant that has been set to music by many composers. It dates to the 13th century, first recorded in a central Italian Franciscan manuscript (Chicago, Newberry Library, 24). A Reichenau manuscript of the 14th century attr ...
''.
Financial sustainability
In early 2005, the new executive director announced that the Festival was about $140,000 in debt—enough to put the Festival's continued existence in jeopardy. Supporters responded; and in two seasons, 65% of that debt was eliminated. The same executive director then resigned citing differences with the Festival's board of directors. Over the following four seasons, the deficit climbed to almost a third of the million dollar annual budget. After 36 years, the Festival closed its doors following the December 2010 winter concert.
Notable performers
Over the years, the Festival featured various performers including both established musicians and up-and-coming talent.
In the media
* “
Melvin Kaplan, the oboist who is the Festival’s artistic director, has pieced together a remarkably attractive season that in its resourcefulness, sophistication and occasional downright giddiness puts many of our better-established festivals to shame.” – Henahan, Donal. ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' (1978)
* “One has all the ingredients necessary for a splendid musical vacation. For those with… a love of gorgeous sites and sounds, the Vermont Mozart Festival is a definite must.” – ''
Montreal Star
''The Montreal Star'' was an English-language Canadian newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It closed in 1979 in the wake of an eight-month pressmen's strike.
It was Canada's largest newspaper until the 1950s and remained the dominan ...
'' (July 1979)
* “The Vermont Mozart Festival brings the music of Mozart to life.” – ''
CBS Sunday Morning
''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (normally shortened to ''Sunday Morning'' on the program itself since 2009) is an American news magazine television program that has aired on CBS since January 28, 1979. Created by Robert Northshield and original host ...
'' (August 1991)
* “Mozart under the lights at
Lincoln Center
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...
is an enchanting musical experience. Mozart under the stars at
Shelburne Farms
Shelburne Farms is a nonprofit education center for sustainability, working farm, and National Historic Landmark on the shores of Lake Champlain in Shelburne, Vermont. The property is nationally significant as a well-preserved example of a Gilde ...
… is something else again. This is a perennial favorite.” – ''New York Times'' (1992)
* “On the score of settings, it’s difficult to beat the Vermont Mozart Festival.” – ''
Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' (1993)
See also
*
Vermont Symphony Orchestra
The Vermont Symphony Orchestra (VSO) is a symphony orchestra based in, and supported in part by, the U.S. state of Vermont. It is a 501(c)(3) corporation. It is one of the few, and the oldest, state-supported symphony orchestras in the United St ...
References
External links
Official site
{{authority control
Music festivals established in 1974
Classical music festivals in the United States
Music festivals in Vermont
Music festivals disestablished in 2010
Mozart festivals
1974 establishments in Vermont
2010 disestablishments in Vermont