Festival to present chamber concert to benefit scholarship

The Hot Springs Music Festival will present an afternoon of chamber music at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 228 Spring St., at 3 p.m. Sept. 16 to benefit the Hot Springs Music Festival Mark Ayers Scholarship.

The concert will feature Andrew Irvin, violin; Tatiana Kotcherguina, viola; Stephen Feldman, cello; and Julie Cheek, piano. They will be performing the Beethoven Piano Quartet in E-flat major Opus 16 and the Piano Quartet in C Minor Opus 15 by Gabriel Fauré.

“Both these works give each performer an opportunity to shine and to share the beauty of their respective instruments,” said Lynn Payette, executive director of the Hot Springs Music Festival.

There is no charge for admission; donations will be accepted. This past June, the Mark Ayers Scholarship was able to assist five deserving apprentices with their fees, making it possible for them to participate in the Hot Springs Music Festival when it would not have been possible without that assistance, a news release said.

Violinist Irvin serves as a mentor for the Hot Springs Music Festival. He started his violin studies in his hometown of Columbia, Mo., with Kathy Rollings and this childhood interest began a life of concerts throughout North America and abroad. After studying with Kevin Lawrence at the University of North Carolina, School of the Arts, Catherine Tait at Eastman and Katy McLin at Arizona State University, Irvin moved to Arkansas where he is concertmaster of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra.

Support for ARMusica is provided, in part, by the Arkansas Arts Council, an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

It is a handicapped-accessible venue. Call Payette at 623-1653 for more information.