From modest beginnings, the annual SummerFest has grown into one of the nation’s leading annual chamber-music-and-beyond events.
There are multiple facets to “Making History,” the theme of La Jolla Music Society’s 2026 SummerFest. The chamber-music-and-beyond fête will celebrate its 40th anniversary between July 31 and Aug. 29 with a star-studded lineup and the most expansive and ambitious season in the event’s history.
Just how expansive is underscored by the titles of some of the 21 concerts that will be presented, starting with the opening night’s “The Incomplete History of the World in Ten Pieces.” It will be followed by, among others, “Vienna 1900,” “Old County, New Age,” “Eastern Visions” and “Conversation Across Centuries.” “Out of the Shadows” will showcase the work of Debussy, Poulenc and other composers in the aftermath of World War I. “Remade/Reborn” will traverse centuries by bookending the U.S. premiere of composer Thomas Ades’ newly revised “Concerto Conciso” with Brahms’ 1864 Piano Quintet in F Minor and Ades’ arrangements of Purcell’s “Four Songs,” which were composed in the late 1600s. “I wanted to look at specific connections that music has had with specific historical events, as well as at how composers evolved and how their work has coincided with those events,” said SummerFest Music Director Inon Barnatan. “Some of this year’s concerts will capture a particular time in a particular place, as well as how fundamental changes in society are reflected in music that captures those moments in history. There are lots of different aspects to this that I’m really glad I’ve been able to sink my teeth into. We’re going to be kind of time-traveling during the entire four-week festival.” To bring this aural time-traveling to life, the 2026 SummerFest lineup will showcase an array of acclaimed artists. They include: violinists Stefan Jackiw, Tessa Lark, Yura Lee and Randall Goosby; pianists Barnatan, Jeremy Denk and Sullivan Fortner; cellist Alisa Weilerstein; saxophonist Steven Banks; contrabass innovator Mark Dresser; and Kronos Quartet cellist Paul Wiancko, who is this year’s composer-in-residence. On Aug. 27, the work of the late singer-songwriter Elliott Smith will be reimagined as vocal-free pieces by jazz piano great Brad Mehldau, San Diego-born mandolin wizard Chris Thile, guitarist Blake Mills, drummer Matt Chamberlain and a 17-piece chamber orchestra from the University of Southern California. On Aug. 15 and 16, Bach’s famed Brandenburg Concertos will be featured alongside a new arrangement of Billy Taylor’s civil rights movement-inspired 1963 jazz-soul classic, “I Wish I Knew What It Was To Be Free,” Wiancko’s 2018 piece, Vox Petra, and selections from Shawn Okpebholo’s 2024 wind quintet, Rise. The majority of SummerFest concerts are held in La Jolla at the Baker-Baum Concert Hall in the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center .“I wanted to open the festival with some kind of historical overview and then experience different eras, without going from Point A to Point B to Point C. It’s a journey, but not a linear one,” Barnatan said, adding: “For me, the repertoire that will be performed at SummerFest is not disassociated from who will be playing it and knowing which musicians are best suited to which pieces.” An acclaimed pianist, the New York-based Barnatan has led SummerFest since 2019. He is only the fourth music director in the event’s 40-year history, having been preceded by Cho-Liang Lin , the husband-and-wife team of David Finckel and Wu Han and former Los Angeles Philharmonic principal violist Heiichiro Ohyama . “Each music director has taken SummerFest one step further,” said La Jolla Music Society Artistic Director Leah Rosenthal. “Audiences really believe in Inon’s vision. And it’s been wonderful to watch him and the circle of artists and experiences he has brought to us.” Barnatan recently signed a contract extension that will stretch until at least 2030 and will perform at no fewer than 11 of the concerts at this year’s festival. He will also make his debut as a conductor at the front of the stage — sans baton — rather than by giving the other musicians visual cues from the piano, as he has often done in the past. “I’ve been taking lessons and I have asked a conductor friend for advice,” Barnatan said, speaking from his Manhattan home. “At the end of the day, the musicians we have at SummerFest will be able to play anything and everything exceptionally well — even with an inexperienced conductor like me! I feel more connected to the music without a baton. Conducting is something I take very seriously.” With or without a baton, Barnatan played a crucial role in helping guide the 2020 edition of SummerFest — his second as its music director — through that year’s pandemic-fueled global shutdown of live events. His first season in 2019 began barely four months after the opening of the nonprofit La Jolla Music Society’s Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center. The 49,000 square-foot complex houses the 513-seat Baker-Baum Concert Hall, rehearsal rooms, offices, state-of-the-art recording facilities and The JAI, an intimate cabaret venue that serves food and drinks. The $82 million center was funded entirely through donations. After pivoting to a truncated, audience-free, online-only iteration in 2020, SummerFest rebounded in 2021. The following year saw the event expand from three weeks of concerts to four weeks. That format, combined with Barnatan’s consistently engaging programming, has seen the event’s popularity steadily build in subsequent years.“After record turnout in 2024, we topped that in 2025 with an attendance of 7,600 which was up 7 percent from the year before. And 91 percent of our seats were ticketed last year, which is a really big percentage,” said La Jolla Music Society President and CEO Todd Schultz, who credits Barnatan as a key driver in the growth of SummerFest. “Inon likes to draw connections for the audience over time and have the music tell a story over the course of a concert. He is very creative in crafting together familiar music with pieces you may not have heard before. Inon lives to excite audiences and I think that’s definitely an extension of who he is. He’s intellectually curious, loves music, loves having fun, and wants you to love the music as much as he does,” Schultz said. “I’m very comfortable with that description,” Barnatan said. “I think a good festival brings together something really meaningful and well thought out, and combines that with a sense of fun for both the audience and the musicians.” His ability to balance earnestness and whimsy, dedication and delight, have reaped palpable benefits for SummerFest. There is no doubt how serious Barnatan is about digging as deeply as possible into music. But he exudes an infectious degree of enthusiasm as both a curator and performer. And he exults in sharing his passions and artistic discoveries with SummerFest attendees. Steve Baum and Brenda Baker, at left, have been driving forces for La Jolla Music Society. They are shown here with society president and CEO Todd Schultz, center, and society supporters Susan and Hoehn and Bill Hoehn. “Inon has a sense of adventure and theater that is different from what you find at a straightforward chamber-music festival,” said former La Jolla Music Society board leader Brenda Baker. She and her husband, former Sempra Energy President and CEO Steve Baum, donated $10 million in underwriting for the construction of the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, whose Baker-Baum Concert Hall is named in their honor. “Inon and Leah work so well together,” Baker continued. “It comes as a great surprise to see how much farther he takes each new SummerFest than the one the year before.” Presented by what was then the La Jolla Chamber Music Society, SummerFest debuted in 1986 in the now-defunct Sherwood Auditorium at what is now the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego in La Jolla. It had been preceded from 1982 to 1985 by the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, a West Coast edition of the famed New Mexico festival that was presented under the auspices of the La Jolla Chamber Music Society at venues that included the Sherwood and The Old Globe in Balboa Park. The seven-day 1982 inaugural edition was budgeted at $160,000 and concluded more than $37,000 in the red. More losses were incurred the following year. Low attendance and recurring financial deficits saw the 1984 festival reduced to five public concerts over four days. Concurrently, all of the lectures, master classes and children’s concerts were eliminated in a cost-cutting measure. But it was too little, too late. The 1984 San Diego iteration of the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival was the last to be held. “Everybody decided they missed the music too much and started fundraising,” recalled Baker, who moved to San Diego with her husband in 1985. “By the time 1986 came along, they were ready to present their own festival and I joined the board. It was very exciting to work behind the scenes.” SummerFest debuted in 1986 with eight concerts. More than 90 percent of the tickets were sold, attendance rose to nearly 4,500, and the festival — which had a budget of $110,000 — nearly broke even. “With so little to choose from in the summer, people were starved for the kind of music SummerFest provided,” Baker — the festival’s first chairwoman — said in a 1986 San Diego Union-Tribune interview. “Now we have to decide if it’s something that can work every year.” Happily, that decision was affirmative and SummerFest steadily grew in size and popularity, much to the surprise and delight of Baker and her fellow board members. “Our main goal that first year was: ‘Don’t lose money’!” Baker said with a laugh. “We weren’t thinking about how long we could keep SummerFest going. It was: ‘How can we do this and not lose money?’ “We had to consider the bottom line, all the time. And that’s been a hallmark of the society ever since — to be fiscally responsible.” La Jolla Music Society Artistic Director Leah Rosenthal and SummerFest Music Director Inon Barnatan are shown at a SummerFest concert prelude. In 2003, La Jolla Chamber Music Society shortened its name to La Jolla Music Society, in part to reflect its expanding artistic focus. The society’s 2006-07 winter season saw the launch of its first dance series and first jazz series. SummerFest’s national profile increased significantly when its concerts aired on NPR each year between 2004 and 2010. Almost all of them took place at the Sherwood Auditorium. The Sherwood, which had also hosted all La Jolla Music Society’s winter seasons, closed in early 2017. It was demolished to make way for a 7,000 square-foot gallery that opened in April 2022 at MCASD.The loss of Sherwood left La Jolla Music Society homeless after a four-decade run. “We’d had a gleam in our eye about one day building our own venue,” Baker said. “And we’d looked at some possible sites, but they were too expensive. We had to get serious when Sherwood closed.” The 2017 and 2018 editions of SummerFest were held on the nearby UC San Diego campus. The 2019 iteration was Barnatan’s first as music director. It took place at the newly opened Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, whose opening heralded a new chapter for the festival and its dedicated presenters. “We do lots of programming year-round, but SummerFest is the heart and soul of this organization,” said Rosenthal, who was began working for the society as an artistic administrator in 2007. “When I started, we had a full-time staff of 11. Now, it is 34 and SummerFest has grown, not only in terms of size and scale but in terms of global recognition, since we are one of only two annual American chamber-music festivals that stream on medici.tv. It’s really special how much music has been made at SummerFest, how many great artists have been presented, and how many new compositions have been commissioned,” Rosenthal said.The late jazz sax giant Wayne Shorter’s Terra Incognita, which was premiered by Imani Winds at the 2006 festival, will be featured at this year’s Aug. 12 concert. The four-woman, one-man Imani Winds is returning to play it.It will feature famed film composer John Williams’ Quartet La Jolla, which debuted at the 2011 SummerFest. One of the featured violinists on the piece will be former SummerFest Music Director Cho-Liang “Jimmy” Lin. “I wanted Jimmy to come back especially for this concert to recognize his role in the history of this festival and because he commissioned Quartet La Jolla,” said Barnatan, Lin’s successor as music director. “I looked through the commission history of SummerFest and asked Jimmy if he’d come perform Quartet La Jolla. And he said: ‘As a matter of fact, I’m making a recording of that piece.’ So, it feels very appropriate and I’m thrilled Jimmy will play that for us.” Barnatan laughed when asked if he has any initial programming plans for the 45th anniversary of SummerFest. “It takes so much time and energy to plan each of these festivals that I can’t possibly think that far ahead. I do have some musicians in place for the 2027 SummerFest, but the plans evolve with the festival,” he said. “Any performance should be — and is — a combination of intention and freedom. You can plan ahead as much as you want. But you have to leave room for things to change on the spot and to see what happens, whether it’s a different piano, a different audience or a different orchestra. I feel like every year teaches me something about how to plan a festival, so I don’t plan too much ahead. Because every festival gives me ideas for the next one.” Violinist Njioma Chinyere Grevious, a Massachusetts native, will perform at the 2026 SummerFest. Unless otherwise indicated below, all concerts are at 7 p.m. at The Baker-Baum Concertevents take place in The JAI, the center’s smaller, 144-seat cabaret venue, and oneand venues are subject to change.— “The Incomplete History of the World in Ten Pieces.” Music by: Von Bingen, Morley, Vivaldi, Mozart, Beethoven, Liszt, Wagner, Stravinsky, Shostakovich, Bernstein, and Heidrich. Featuring: Inon Barnatan, Sterling Elliott, Karen Gomyo, Randall Goosby, Stefan Jackiw, Jeremy Kurtz-Harris, George Li, Reginald Mobley, Blake Pouliot, Masumi Rostad, and Alisa Weilerstein.— Johann Strauss’ Keizer Waltzer, Op. 434 ; Strauss’ Violin Sonata, Op. 18; Berg’s Sieben Frühe Lieder ; and Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht . Featuring: Inon Barnatan, Sterling Elliott, Karen Gomyo, Randall Goosby, Stefan Jackiw, Yoonah Kim, George Li, Rose Lombardo, Blake Pouliot, Masumi Rostad, and Alisa Weilerstein.— Lily Boulanger’s 2 Pieces for Violin and Piano; Ullmann’s String Quartet No. 3, Op. 46; Gershwin’s Transcriptions from Porgy and Bess ; and Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater. Featuring: Inon Barnatan, Timothy Cobb, Sterling Elliott, Karen Gomyo, Randall Goosby, Stefan Jackiw, George Li, Reginald Mobley, Blake Pouliot, Masumi Rostad, Ruben Valenzuela, and Alisa Weilerstein.— Stravinsky’s Suite Italienne and Schubert’s Octet in F Major, D. 803. Featuring Timothy Cobb, Stefan Dohr, Sterling Elliott, Karen Gomyo, Eleni Katz, Radu Ratoi, Ricardo Morales, Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, Andrew Wan, and Alisa Weilerstein. SummerFest violin favorite Tessa Lark is equally adept performing classical and bluegrass music. — Debussy’s Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp; Harrison’s Varied Trio; Ravel’s Tzigane; Cage’s Selected Sonatas for Prepared Piano; and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Selection from Scheherazade . Featuring: Efe Baltacigil, Inon Barnatan, Stefan Dohr, Sam Hager, Erin Keefe, Graeme Steele Johnson, Tessa Lark, Matthew Lipman, Rose Lombardo, Pedja Muzijevic, Julie Smith Phillips, Blake Pouliot, Steven Schick, Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, and Andrew Wan.— Tajcevic’s Seven Balkan Dances; Dvorák’s Piano Trio No. 4 in E Minor “Dumky;” Weinberg’s Rhapsody on Moldavian Themes, Op. 47; and Bartók’s Divertimento for String Orchestra. Featuring: Efe Baltacigil, Sterling Elliott, Zoltán Fejérvári, Sam Hager, Kathryn Hatmaker, Erin Keefe, Tessa Lark, Matthew Lipman, Anthony Manzo, Pedja Muzijevic, Blake Pouliot, Wesley Precourt, Radu Ratoi, Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, Andrew Wan, and Cherry Yeung.— J.S. Bach’s Chaconne in D Minor, BWV 1178 and Passacaglia in C Minor, BWV 582; Chopin’s Waltz “Found in New York;” Vaughan Williams’ Piano Quintet in C Minor; Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 1 in D Major, K. 412/514 ; and Loeffler’s Octet. Featuring: Efe Baltacigil, Stefan Dohr, Sterling Elliott, Graeme Steele Johnson, Erin Keefe, Henry Kramer, Matthew Lipman, Anthony Manzo, Julie Smith Phillips, Blake Pouliot, Radu Ratoi, Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, Osmo Vänskä, and Andrew Wan.— Prokofiev’s String Quartet No. 1, Op. 50; Poulenc’s Flute Sonata, FP 164; Shorter’s Terra Incognita ; and Copland’s Appalachian Spring. Featuring: Rebecca Albers, Efe Baltacigil, Mark Dover, Monica Ellis, Zoltán Fejérvári, Emi Ferguson, Brandon Patrick George, Mekhi Gladden, Henry Kramer, Ayane Kozasa, Tessa Lark, Anthony Manzo, Kevin Newton, Blake Pouliot, Arnaud Sussman, and Paul Wiancko.“Out of the Shadows” — Debussy’s En Blanc et Noir for Two Pianos; Bridge’s Lament for Two Violas; Poulenc’s Sextet, FP 100; and Korngold’s Suite for Left Hand and Strings, Op. 23. Featuring: Rebecca Albers, Inon Barnatan, Mark Dover, Monica Ellis, Zoltán Fejérvári, Brandon Patrick George, Mekhi Gladden, Henry Kramer, Ayane Kozasa, Tessa Lark, Kevin Newton, Arnaud Sussmann, and Paul Wiancko.— J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No.6 in B-Flat Major, BWV 1051; Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major, BWV 1048; Paul Wiancko’s Vox Petra; and J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D Major, BWV 1050. Featuring: Rebecca Albers, Doug Balliett, David Belkovski, Emi Ferguson, Coleman Itzkoff, Ela Kodzas, Ayane Kozasa, Daniel McCarthy, Aisslinn Nosky, Edson Scheid, and Paul Wiancko.— J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 in F Major, BWV 1046; Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F Major, BWV 1047; Shawn Okpebholo’s Selections from Rise; Taylor’s I Wish I Knew How It Feels to Be Free ; and J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 in G Major, BWV 1049. Featuring: Doug Balliett, David Belkovski, Mark Dover, Monica Ellis, Emi Ferguson, Mekhi Gladden, Brandon Patrick George, Coleman Itzkoff, Ela Kodzas, Daniel McCarthy, Kevin Newton, Aisslinn Nosky, Brandon Ridenour, Edson Scheid, Sarah Skuster, and Kaylet Torrez.— Paul Wiancko’s Cities of Air; Angélica Negrón’s Marejada; Salina Fisher’s Mata Au; Messiaen’s Louange à l’Éternité de Jésus; and Wiancko’s Tiny Doors to Big Worlds. Featuring: Inon Barnatan, Emi Ferguson, Tessa Lark, Coleman Itzkoff, Ayane Kozasa, and Paul Wiancko.Wednesday, August 19: “Midweek Masterworks: Remade/Reborn” — Purcell’s Four Songs ; Adès’ Concerto Conciso; Brahms’ Piano Quintet in F Minor, Op. 34. Featuring: Thomas Adès, Steven Banks, Inon Barnatan, Jennifer Johnson Cano, Jeremy Denk, Mark Dresser, Njioma Chinyere Grevious, Sidney Hopson, Yura Lee, Teng Li, Aaron McCalla, Simone Porter, Brandon Ridenour, Eric Starr, Jonathan Swensen, and John Bruce Yeh.— Lutoslawski’s Paganini Variations; Williams’ Quartet La Jolla; a work by Steven Banks, Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence. Featuring: Steven Banks, Inon Barnatan, Benjamin Beilman, Jay Campbell, Jennifer Johnson Cano, Jeremy Denk, Jeremy Kurtz-Harris, Teng Li, Cho-Liang Lin, Nina Lee, Yura Lee, Rose Lombardo, Paul Neubauer, Julie Smith Phillips, Simone Porter, Jonathan Swensen, and John Bruce Yeh.Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, La Jolla.— Vaughan Williams’ On Wenlock Edge; Elgar’s Piano Quintet in A Minor, Op. 84; and Walton’s Façade. Featuring: Thomas Adès, Steven Banks, Benjamin Beilman, Jay Campbell, Jeremy Denk, James Ehnes, Njioma Chinyere Grevious, Sidney Hopson, Nina Lee, Teng Li, Rose Lombardo, Brandon Ridenour, Jonathan Swensen, Robin Tritschler, Stephen Waarts, and John Bruce Yeh.— Schubert’s An die Musik, D.547; Ganymed, D.544; Die Forelle, D.550; Fantasy in F Minor, D.940; Die Sterne, D.939; Du bist die Ruh, D.776; Erlkönig, D.328; String Quartet in C Minor, D.703; and Rondo in A Major for Violin and Strings, D.438. Featuring: Ani Aznavoorian, Inon Barnatan, Benjamin Beilman, Jonathan Biss, Owen Dalby, James Ehnes, Njioma Chinyere Grevious, Hsin-Yun Huang, Nina Lee, Robin Tritschler, Jonathan Vinocour, and Stephen Waarts. San Diego-bred mandolin great Chris Thile will join a band led by jazz pianist Brad Mehldau as part of Ka Jolla Music Society’s 2026 SummerFest lineup. .” Featuring: Chris Thile, Blake Mills, Matt Chamberlain & John Davis with USC Thornton Chamber Virtuosi, Dan Coleman conductor.— Haydn’s She Never Told Her Love; Vaughan Williams’ Orpheus with His Lute; Quilter’s O Mistress Mine; Rautavaara’s Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?; Dale’s Come Away, Death; Beethoven’s Piano Trio No. 5, Op. 70, No. 1 “Ghost;” Halvorsen’s Sarabande con variazione on a Theme by Handel; and Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. Featuring: Ani Aznavoorian, Inon Barnatan, Benjamin Beilman, Jonathan Biss, Owen Dalby, James Ehnes, Njioma Chinyere Grevious, Sam Hager, Kathryn Hatmaker, Hsin-Yun Huang, Nina Lee, Anthony Manzo, Simone Porter, Wesley Precourt, Jonathan Swensen, Jeff Thayer, Robin Tritschler, Jonathan Vinocour, Stephen Waarts, and Cherry Yeung— David Serkin Ludwig’s Rule of Three; Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 7 for Three Pianos, K. 242; Dvorák’s Terzetto; and Mustonen’s Triple Concerto for Three Violins and Chamber Orchestra. Featuring: Ani Aznavoorian, Inon Barnatan, Jonathan Biss, Claire Brazeau, Owen Dalby, James Ehnes, Njioma Chinyere Grevious, Kathryn Hatmaker, Sidney Hopson, Hsin-Yun Huang, Nina Lee, Anthony Manzo, Simone Porter, Wesley Precourt, Sarah Skuster, Jonathan Swensen, Jonathan Vinocour, Stephen Waarts, and Cherry Yeung.The Baker-Baum Concert Hall and The JAI at Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, 7600 Fay Ave., La JollaSummerFest subscriptions are available now. A complete subscription for all 17 concerts in The Baker-Baum Concert Hall ranges from $1,387 to $1,675, depending on seat location. Concerts in The JAI are added onto packages. Summerfest Flex packages are also available. Single concert tickets will be available starting May 4 and range in price from $45 to $145.
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