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2025 Chamber Music Conference Information

We are pleased to announce that we are now accepting applications for this summer’s Chamber Music Conference at Colgate University!

The most central and differentiating feature of our program is the coaching experience with our outstanding Conference faculty. Please read the Coaching page for a description of this experience and the different coaching formats that we offer.

Because we aim to admit a full and balanced roster of coached participants to each Conference week, within the capacity of the facilities at Colgate, we highly value flexibility that applicants offer regarding the week(s) that they can attend. Each of our four Conference weeks provides richly rewarding musical and social experiences, and we encourage applicants to indicate as many available weeks as possible.

We offer the ability for participants to pre-form groups for coaching within some practical limits (see the Coaching page for information about requests and pre-formed groups). Because the admissions process depends on the flexibility that applicants offer, we ask that applicants refrain from pre-forming groups until admissions are communicated in mid-March.

We also offer the opportunity to participate in the Composers' Forum, which features a Composer-in-Residence and a Composition Fellow at each of weeks 2, 3, and 4. In the application form we ask you to indicate your interest in being coached on a Composers’ Forum work. See the Composers' Forum page for information about the composer residencies and commissioned works.

We are accepting applications for Conference auditors (see the Auditing page for information about the option of auditing at the Conference). Because the coaching schedule in week 1 provides very limited time for free play, we recommend that auditors seeking free-play opportunities apply for week 2, 3, or 4. We will not know until after February 15 which weeks have space for auditors. If you are applying to attend the Conference as an auditor, please indicate all the weeks you can possibly attend, and we will do our best to make it work.

New Applicants and Applicants Returning After 10+ Years

Welcome new applicants and welcome back returning applicants! If we haven’t seen you in ten years or more, we are thrilled that you are returning to us and we ask that you follow our new applicant process so that we can reacquaint ourselves after the long gap.

Please read the information below, which describes the new applicant process. Then use the CMC Participant and Auditor Application Form to submit your application.

To enjoy the Conference experience fully, you should be able to play your instrument(s) skillfully, have good sight-reading ability, and have some chamber music experience. So that we can form coached groups with players of similar playing level and experience, we ask new applicants, and applicants returning after ten years or more, to provide references and play for a CMC faculty member.

The application form asks for the following information:

After we complete our review of your application materials, we arrange for you to meet with and play for a CMC faculty member. This friendly and informal “get to know you” session is typically 20-30 minutes by Zoom or FaceTime. Plan to share two contrasting examples (from solo, chamber, or orchestral repertoire) that are representative of your ability on your instrument(s); one example should showcase your technical facility and the other your expressive and interpretive qualities. The faculty member might coach you a little, they might ask you to sight-read something, and they will chat with you about what your experience is with chamber music and what you hope to work on at the Conference.

In our admissions process we consider all on-time applications together, and we typically have many openings to include new applicants and those returning after a long gap. When space gets tight, we give higher priority to recently returning players. Space is determined primarily by your instrument, the weeks you are available to attend, and the other applications we receive from new and returning applicants. These same factors influence timing; your meeting with a faculty member could happen very soon after you submit your application or some time later. However, because of the additional steps involved, applying early does provide an advantage for new applicants.

Health Precautions

Please read the list of precautions carefully, so that you have a complete awareness and understanding of what to expect of us and what we expect of you. It is essential that all attendees comply with our precautions to protect the health of our community and to minimize disruptions to our coachings, concerts, and other programs.

These precautions were determined after consultation with experts in the fields of infectious disease and occupational health and safety.

Because the conditions are constantly evolving, our precautions could change, and some aspects of the precautions will be finalized closer to the time of the Conference. The precautions that we are specifying now are what we anticipate based on our understanding at this time. It is important that everyone who plans to attend the Conference commit to adhere to the precautions in effect when they attend.

If we make any changes to the precautions as specified here, we will notify all attendees prior to the Conference.

Accommodations

The housing options are different from last year, and include dorms and apartments. Please review the section on Accommodations in the Beyond Music page on our website. Housing is always in single-occupancy rooms unless you request to share a room. In the application form you will be asked to indicate a preference for a dorm, an apartment, or either.

Please note:  Because the apartments are about ⅔ of a mile (a 10-20 minute, very steep walk) from the academic quad where all of our activities take place, we strongly recommend that you have access to a vehicle if you select “Apartment” or “Either” as your housing preference.

Accessibility

Attendance at the Conference requires the ability to independently negotiate Colgate’s walking paths, including some steep slopes. Some conveniences, such as elevator-equipped housing and playing spaces, are available, but you still must be able to move between buildings several times per day, on a hilly campus. Some attendees have made their own arrangements to rent mobility scooters, such as from this vendor.

The Accommodations section of our Beyond Music page gives some examples of distances and walking times on campus.

Non-Playing Guests

If you wish to bring an adult (21+ years), non-playing guest with you, each guest must personally complete a CMC Non-Playing Guest Registration Form (for adults) in order to provide information that we require of all attendees. The deadline to register and pay for guests is May 15.

Fees and Payment

Weekly Fees for Participants – $1,850. Includes tuition, room and board, free-playing, use of all facilities, and admission to all concerts and parties.

Weekly Fees for Auditors – $1,550. Includes attendance as an observer at coaching sessions, room and board, free-playing, use of all facilities, and admission to all concerts and parties.

Weekly Fees for Non-Playing Guests – $625. Includes room and board and admission to all concerts and parties. Note that guest fees are payable in full upon the guest’s registration.

Application Fee – $200 per person per week. Both the application fee and the completed online application form must be received for an application to be processed. If we cannot admit you, the application fee will be fully refunded; otherwise, the application fee is nonrefundable.

Balance Payments – After you are admitted, the application fee is applied to your attendance fee. The balance will be due by April 15 and is nonrefundable.

Method of Payment – The Application Fee payment can be made from within the CMC Participant and Auditor Application Form. Any fee payments can also be submitted by using the online CMC Payment Form.

Financial Aid

Financial aid, made possible in part by donations to the Financial Aid Fund, is available to support participants who are unable to pay the full fee. Financial aid is awarded based on need – both the participant's need for support and the Conference's need for particular players. If you are requesting financial aid, provide details in your application form.

Timeline

This is the timeline for the Chamber Music Conference application process:

February 15:  Application deadline for all applicants to be considered together for space in the program. After this date, applications are still welcome; participant applications received for spaces already filled may be put on a participant waiting list.

Mid-March:  Acceptance letters are sent, including information about submitting your coaching requests.

April 15:  Your nonrefundable payment balance is due.

May 15:  Registration and payment deadline for any non-playing guests.

Guiding Principles for Our Conduct

Everyone attending the Conference, including faculty, participants, auditors, and staff, is expected to follow the provisions and spirit of the Conference’s Guiding Principles for Our Conduct.

Submitting an Application

We are accepting applications online using the CMC Participant and Auditor Application Form.

Questions

All inquiries should be directed to Susie Ikeda, our Executive Director, at susieikeda@cmceast.org or 617-447-1808.


The Chamber Music Conference and Composers’ Forum of the East, Inc.
Tobias Werner, Music Director
Donald Crockett, Senior Composer-in-Residence
Susie Ikeda, Executive Director

617-447-1808 | cmceast@cmceast.org
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