Submitted Photo Julia Beck on violin, Kevin Vandal on piano and Anthony Schreier on viola rehearse as an ensemble. Dakota Chamber Music will provide a week-long opportunity for participants to engage in ensemble playing.

Dakota Chamber Music will return to Minot State University with a selection of musical programs open to the public Saturday through June 22.

DCM is a weeklong opportunity for participants ages 13 to 60-plus to engage in small ensemble playing, providing an intensive experience in musical performance and growth. The 59 participants from locations as diverse as Saskatchewan, Canada, to Texas will work with faculty from Minot State and the University of Georgia, as well as faculty from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Fargo.

“Chamber music is my favorite kind of music, and it is an honor and a pleasure to bring back faculty members who were once participants in the high school program many years ago,” said Jon Rumney, DCM co-founder and MSU high strings and music history professor.

The following performances are free and open to the public: Faculty concerts, Saturday, 7 p.m., Ann Nicole Nelson Hall, and Tuesday, 7 p.m., Northwest Arts Center; Participant concerts, weekend adult ensembles, Sunday, June 18, 3:30 p.m., Ann Nicole Nelson Hall, and adult ensembles, Wednesday, June 21, 7 p.m., Ann Nicole Nelson Hall; Participant concert, grades 7-12 ensembles, Thursday, June 22, 11:30 a.m., Ann Nicole Nelson Hall.

Faculty performances will include music by Joseph Haydn, David Maslanka, Gian Carlo Menotti and Astor Piazolla on Saturday, and music by Jan Bach, Fernande Decruck, Bedrich Smetana and Aleks Tengesdal on Tuesday.

Tengesdal is a Minot native and his piece “Galaxyrise” will receive its world premiere at the concert.

“Aleks is one of the faculty members who participated in DCM beginning as a young high schooler,” Rumney said. He and alumni Jason and Sean Neukom, both 2005 graduates and members of the Beo String Quartet, will be featured in both faculty concerts.

Now it its third decade, DCM continues its tradition of bringing chamber music to life each June. Faculty and participants work together to understand and communicate in the language of music, where all music making is a shared experience.

DCM is made possible, in part, with support from Associated Chamber Music Players and the North Dakota Council on the Arts.