What Is Chamber Music?
When classical musicians talk about "chamber music," they're referring to music written for small groups of musicians and performed without a conductor. In contrast to symphonies and operas, intended for the world's great concert halls, chamber music is meant for smaller, more intimate settings. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, when much great chamber music was written, it was played in palace dining rooms, grand entry halls, or the parlors of wealthy patrons. Some well-to-do families and even some churches had their own in-house composers. Present-day composers still write chamber music, and musicians are eager to perform it, both for its challenging virtuosity and its intimate beauty.
The classic chamber ensemble is the string quartet: two violins, a viola, and a cello. Thousands of works have been written for this particular group of instruments. Composers also write for woodwind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and horn). There are compositions for harpsichord and strings, voice and piano, flute and harp, consorts of recorders, brass choirs in various configurations, and countless other combinations.
These small but serious compositions, ancient and modern, are often performed today in large auditoriums, but Salon Concerts Inc. prefers to present this beautiful music in its intended setting: elegant private homes.