2024 Festival Schedule

Acclaimed worldwide for his profound musicianship and technical mastery, British cellist Steven Isserlis offers a dynamic and inspiring recital to open the Festival’s 17th season. With a unique and distinguished career as a soloist, chamber musician, educator, author, and broadcaster, Isserlis’s program will include works by Saint-Saëns, Fauré, and Beethoven.

An imaginative and electrifying performer, Zee Zee is unique among the young generation of pianists. She has been hailed as “a powerful, passionate and compelling representation of pure artistry” (Los Angeles Times), and she brings that expressive creativity to the music of Schubert, Beethoven, and Schumann in her Festival debut.

Recipient of both the 2015 Avery Fisher Career Grant and the 2017 Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists, violinist Paul Huang is considered to be one of the most distinctive artists of his generation. A frequent guest artist at music festivals worldwide, Huang comes to the Minnesota Beethoven Festival this summer to showcase his “big, luscious tone, spot-on intonation, and a technique that makes the most punishing string phrases feel as natural as breathing,” (The Washington Post), in a recital that includes Saint-Saëns’s Violin Sonata No. 1.

Grammy and Emmy-winning ensemble Time For Three (TF3) defies convention and boundaries by showcasing excellence across different genres, including classical music, Americana, and singer-songwriter. Their remarkable sound combines their instruments and voices, establishing a distinct voice of expression that captivates and resonates with listeners worldwide. You won’t want to miss the appearance of this unique group at the Festival this summer!

Through his kaleidoscopic career as a pianist, conductor, educator, and curator of memorable musical moments, Awadagin Pratt is actively inventing the artistic world he longs to live in. Since launching his career after winning the Naumburg International Piano Competition in 1992 and receiving the 1994 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Awadagin has been acclaimed as “one of the great and distinctive American pianists and conductors of our time” (WGBH).

Mark your calendars for the biggest event of the summer! The Minnesota Orchestra is back with the annual free pops concert at Lake Park. Pack a picnic, bring your lawn chairs, and enjoy world-class music at this Festival tradition!

Festival favorite Joshua Bell is back this summer! With a career spanning almost four decades, the Grammy-winning violinist is one of the most celebrated artists of his era. After an appearance with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields at the Festival last summer, Bell returns to Winona for a solo recital.

The Esmé Quartet is a dynamic and multi-faceted string quartet that has rapidly gained a worldwide reputation as a chamber group of exceptional artistry and achievement. First prize winners of the 2018 International String Competition, the quartet has been winning audiences and reviewers over with its infectious energy and immaculate ensemble playing. They make their Festival debut performing quartets by Beethoven, Korngold, and Schumann.

Our season draws to a close with the Minnesota Orchestra. The Grammy-winning group, now in its second century, has long ranked among America’s top symphonic ensembles, with a distinguished history of acclaimed performances in Minnesota and around the world. Don’t miss this incredible Festival finale!