30 August 2026 · 15:00
Musis Sacrum, Arnhem
More than a concert — a voyage through a woman's inner world.
"She walks past. She won't look back. She never stays."
— from La Dame
Dutch Chamber Fest 2025 brought twelve young musicians to Arnhem for three intensive days — workshops, ensemble rehearsals, one-on-one coaching, and a closing concert at Musis Sacrum that left its mark on everyone who was there.
In 2026, that energy is channelled into something more focused: a staged chamber music production with a touch of theatre, and a thread of mentorship woven through every rehearsal. This is not a lesser version of the festival — it is a different, sharper one.
An intimate ensemble. A story about a woman. Music that does not illustrate — it is.
The heart of the ensemble beats young talent: Emanuel Akopian (violin), Boaz Levy Bisoendial (violin), and Nika Nesterenko (flute) — musicians of remarkable initiative and extraordinary talent.
This young ensemble is coached by three experienced musicians who perform and teach across the world.
Sofia Vasheruk (piano & artistic concept) is the founder of Dutch Chamber Fest and the creative mind behind La Dame — its idea, its dramaturgy, its shape. A concert pianist educated at ArtEZ Conservatorium (Master cum laude) and with Professor Eliso Virsaladze at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole, she performs chamber and solo music across Europe and Asia — with the Noord Nederlands Orkest and other ensembles — and was a semifinalist of the Queen Elisabeth Piano Competition. Alongside the keyboard, she creates and leads projects that bring musicians together.
Julia Dinerstein (viola) is a soloist and chamber musician who teaches widely across the Dutch conservatories — Maastricht, Rotterdam, ArtEZ and beyond. A Soloist Master with Distinction from the Maastricht Conservatory, she is a second-prize winner of the Beethoven International Viola Competition.
Aleksandra Kaspera (cello) performs both as a soloist and as a chamber musician with The String Soloists, with whom she has played at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. She is also an active teacher, passing the craft on to the next generation.
Direction by Ria Marks — core maker at Orkater, the Netherlands' leading music-theatre company, since 1983. A career spanning 119 productions across direction, libretto, choreography, and performance; co-creator of Valse Wals, winner of the Prix Italia and Canadian Rocky Award.
The voice of La Dame: Ekaterina Levental — soprano, actress, harpist. Two master's degrees cum laude from the Royal Conservatoire The Hague. Debut at De Nationale Opera (Amsterdam); performances at the Holland Festival and across Europe, Africa, and Asia. Her autobiographical music-theatre trilogy has played on three continents. De Groene Amsterdammer: “a theatrical natural talent — singer, instrumentalist and more than that.”
La Dame moves through works by Ravel, Weill, Poulenc, Shostakovich, Stravinsky, and de Falla — each chosen for what it says beneath the notes. Several pieces appear in new arrangements made for this ensemble. The result is not a recital but a single dramatic arc: ninety minutes in which the music does not illustrate the story. It is the story.
"I believe the most important thing in music is communication — not direct communication with the audience, though that matters too, but communication with history, with emotion, with the people on stage beside you, and ultimately with yourself. Through music, we understand ourselves better than in any other way. And in the end, that understanding goes straight to the listener's heart.
My dream has always been to bring people together through music — to find stories and subtext, to infect the next generation with ideas and enthusiasm, to study and fall in love with every piece you play, and make each one a unique story that sounds different every day, because nothing in the world ever stands still.
In this concert you will find incredible, wonderfully different musicians. Don't miss this bouquet — and our new musical Story — on 30 August, in one of the most beautiful concert halls in the Netherlands."
— Sofia Vasheruk, piano & concept, Dutch Chamber Fest
Ekaterina Levental — soprano
Sofia Vasheruk — piano & artistic concept
Ria Marks — director
Dutch Chamber Fest Ensemble
Emanuel Akopian · violin Boaz Levy Bisoendial · violin
Julia Dinerstein · viola Aleksandra Kaspera · cello
Nika Nesterenko · flute
Tickets for Dutch Chamber Fest 2026 — La Dame — are available online.
| Date | Saturday, 30 August 2026 |
| Time | 15:00 (doors open earlier) |
| Venue | Musis Arnhem |
| Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
| Early Bird — until 12 July, or first 80 seats | €22 |
| Regular | €29 |
| Last-minute / Door | €32 |
| Student / Youth (under 23) | €12.50 |
| Friend of the Festival — reserved seat, name in the programme, supports the foundation | €50 |
| Patron — best seats, interval drink, supports the foundation | €75 |
| Group (4 or more) — per person | €25 |
Student / Youth: ID checked at the door. Any service fee is shown at checkout.
The programme for Dutch Chamber Fest 2026 will be announced as the date approaches.
Past editions have featured works by Ravel, Debussy, Poulenc, Shostakovich, Villa-Lobos, and Stravinsky — with performers and coaches of international standing.
After a year away from competition, Dutch Chamber Fest returns in 2026 with something different. On 30 August 2026, Musis Sacrum in Arnhem will host La Dame — a staged song-cycle for one voice, chamber ensemble, and the things that can’t be put into words. The programme traces a single dramatic arc: Ravel’s sealed elegance […]
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