You'd usually expect calm and quiet when entering a library. That's what I expected when walking into the public library in Berlin, Maryland. But instead, I was greeted with laughter, dancing, and a concert from a world renowned violist. You're listening to Off the Record, with Stephen Philip Harvey, where we sit down and talk to a variety of musicians on today's music scene. Today we're sitting down with Elena Urioste. She's a London-based American violist. In addition to being a prizewinning touring soloist, she also passionately produces an annual music festival on the Eastern shore for the last decade. But how did Chamber Music by the Sea come to be?
“Well, the first year of Chamber Music by the Sea, which was in 2016, was two concerts, or barely two concerts. There was one public one at Buckingham Presbyterian Church in downtown Berlin, and then we had a house concert. There were only four musicians, and it was very much like a trial year. We just wanted to see if it would work, and we hadn't yet been connected with the Worcester County Education Foundation. Education is extremely important to me, and Arts education in particular. So to have all of the proceeds from our festival funnel directly into the Ed Foundation is perfect. They're able to spread the word, spread the mission, and it's perfect. So yeah, I feel like every year we've maybe added one or two concerts. So the kids concert, for sure,” Urioste said.
The kids concert was my vantage point into the festival, and as far as first impressions go, it was great. A varied program of music from the early 20th century. Popular music from the fifties, from the eighties, and today, a completely improvised piece. Late Baroque music, all connecting with children in a meaningful way.
“We do a family concert every year at Chamber Music by the Sea, including the years that we were on Zoom during the pandemic, and it's a real feature of the festival. I've been doing outreach and playing for children since I was about 16, and my career started basically, I've always really loved it. It requires a slightly different skillset. I mean, you're playing of course, and you want to play well, but I would say that the energy that you have to bring to the experience is arguably more than that of a typical performance for grownups,” Urioste explained.
Oh, absolutely.
“You need to be dialoguing with the kids. You have to be prepared for anything really, including some extremely honest reactions, which I think is good. It keeps us in check. But yeah, so that has been a central feature of Chamber Music by the Sea,” said Urioste.
Chamber Music by the Sea just celebrated its 10th season, but it doesn't seem like Elena's going to be lounging anytime soon. She's already thinking about the future of the festival.
“My favorite thing to do is to put music in places where you might not expect it. I love church concerts, but what really excites me is bringing music to a bar or random museum, or finding little stages or nooks within the community that could successfully house a group of classical musicians,” Urioste said.
Chamber Music by the Sea returns to the Eastern Shore in 2026. More information about Elena Urioste can be found on her site, elenaurioste.com. That's elenaurioste.com. This was Off the Record, hosted by me, Stephen Philip Harvey, a Delmar Republic Media Production. Thanks for listening to our interview with Elena Urioste. To hear more Off the Record interviews or to listen to other original segments like this, visit delmarvapublicmedia.org.
