The Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival (SICMF) is a vibrant musical event which not only provides a stage for seasoned international musicians, but also gives talented young artists an opportunity to perform.
At the 2016 SICMF – to be held from 1 to 10 July at the Stellenbosch University (SU) Konservatorium – six concerts will be presented by exciting student ensembles from across the world. Also, well-known local pianist, 25-year-old Megan-Geoffrey Prins, a SU alumnus who is currently a doctoral candidate at the Cleveland Institute Music in America, will join the SICMF faculty as an apprentice.
This year, the festival welcomes about 300 mostly South African students, who will receive master classes and coaching sessions from 30 faculty members. The highlight of the festival is the ten evening concerts presented in the Konservatorium’s Endler Hall.
The six concerts performed by the invited student ensembles are held from 1 to 3 July in the Fismer Hall at the Konservatorium.
In the first concert, on Friday 1 July at 13:00, the US Trio from Stellenbosch will perform. The group, consisting of Visser Liebenberg (clarinet), Colette
US Trio_fltr Sulayman Human, Colette Brand, Visser Liebenberg
Brand (cello) and Sulayman Human (piano), was established in 2015. They will perform works by Brahms and Bruch.
At 17:00 on Friday 1 July, the percussion duo Face Two Phase from Spain will be on stage. The group was created by two young percussion students, Julian Enciso and Joan Perez-Villegas, at the ESMUC (Catalonia’s College of Music) at the end of 2014. Their aim is to explore the repertoire for percussion duo, especially for marimba and vibraphone.
The University of Pretoria Piano Quintet performs the Piano Quintet in A major, Op.81, by Dvóřak on Saturday 2 July at 13:00. The members are Aimée Porter and Tesmarie Jansen van Vuuren (violin), Friederike Scholtz (viola), André Breet (cello), and Caryn Reed (piano).
On Saturday 2 July at 17:00 the Furiant Quartet from Germany will be on stage. Since its inception in 2011, the quartet has had many opportunities to perform in Slovenia, Austria, Holland, Italy, Germany and France, while also receiving master classes from top string quartets.
The Vorarlberg State Conservatory String Sextet from Austria performs on Sunday 3 July at 13:00. Founded in 2015, the sextet is a combination of students – of which three are South African – representing both the Vorarlberg State Conservatory and its partner school, Mozarteum Salzburg.
On Sunday 3 July at 17:00 the Stellenbosch Certificate Programme Brass Quintet and the US Jazz Combo share the stage. The Brass Quintet was established in 2015 and had its debut performance at the 2015 SICMF. The US Jazz Combo is led and trained by Philip Vermeulen (guitar), an administrative staff member in the Music Department at Stellenbosch University.
Prize-winning pianist Megan-Geoffrey Prins will perform in a number of the SICMF evening concerts. Among the works is the world premiere of local composer Matthijs van Dijk’s Moments in a Life, based on the life of anti-apartheid activist Denis Goldberg (who will perform as narrator in the work).
“I am excited to be serving on the SICMF faculty as an apprentice. In particular, I am looking forward to collaborating with amazing musicians for the world premiere of this work that pays homage to an icon like Denis Goldberg,” says Prins.
- Tickets are available from Computicket, or call ( to purchase a festival pass.