Ottawa (August 6, 2007) — Following an extremely successful Chamberfest ’07 where the calibre of musicianship and audience enthusiasm ran very high, the Ottawa Chamber Music Society (OCMS) is already working on its 2007-08 Concert Series.

“We have had a fabulous Festival. It exceeded all our expectations in terms of music quality as well as feedback from both musicians and audiences,” said Ottawa Chamber Music Society’s interim executive director John Frecker.

“Without final sales from ticketing outlets, we are working on provisional numbers. But it looks as if we came well within 5 percent of last year’s total,” he explained. “Given the uncertainties of the past year, the extreme summer heat and the significant drop in Stateside tourists, this is very encouraging for Chamberfest’s future.”

Both on and off stage, musicians expressed their support for Festivals in general, and Chamberfest in particular. “You have a great Festival here. There’s nothing else like it anywhere in the world. And we should know. We’ve played in most of them,” said Fergus McWilliam of the Berlin Philharmonic String Quintet.

Audiences can now look forward to an equally strong 2007-08 Concert Series, which promises a high calibre of musicianship, and variety. The series opens October 9 with the Nippon Foundation’s ‘All Strad’ Concert featuring 11 musicians each playing an original Stradivarius instrument from the Foundation’s celebrated collection.

December 7 will see the nine-member moderntimes_1800 ensemble. This unique Austrian chamber orchestra utilizes the instruments and playing styles corresponding to the period each work was created. The world-renowned Emerson String Quartet returns January 29, 2008. The Mozart Piano Quartet makes a debut appearance in Ottawa on February 22.

In March, the hugely successful New Music concerts held at Maxwell’s Bistro in each of the past two years returns: a unique opportunity to hear some of the great music being written in Ottawa, played by local musicians in an intimate club-like setting. To accommodate the demand for tickets, this concert will be presented on two separate nights.

The 2007-08 Concert Series closes with a major production, details of which will be posted shortly on the OCMS website: www.chamberfest.com. As will information - dates, times, venues, as well as programme content, ticket prices and outlets - relating to the entire Series.

“Meanwhile,” explains John Frecker, “it is full steam ahead on securing a naming sponsor and public funding for the purpose built concert hall OCMS has been spearheading. It’s a priority issue, as all of us in the music community want to see it become a reality.”

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Frances Phillips, (613) 234-8008 Ex. 241; Mob. (613) 852-7848; or email media@chamberfest.com