Our summer festival takes place the last week of July into the first few days of August and is open to college students and young professionals ages 18 and up. We accept pre-formed groups or individual applicants. All attendees will come prepared with repertoire ready to perform, or at the final stages of preparation. Performances will begin mid-week. Upon acceptance, repertoire will be discussed with each group or individual selected. This repertoire will be finalized and all concerts will be planned in advance. Groups will either be featured on their own concert or be programmed alongside other groups. We present different repertoire at every concert, with some repetition of pieces when needed. Each concert contains 60-75 minutes of music.
Our program is unique because of the number of performances and the variety of different venues we offer our young artist performers. We offer the opportunity to practice performing and be featured as headliners in our festival. As part of the experience, we ask our musicians to talk and introduce the works they perform. During the week we present concerts in 6 different coastal cities within 60 miles our home base in Port Orford.
The casual atmosphere of our festival also allows for an interactive experience where young artists can discuss career goals and receive feedback and guidance from musicians who have spent their careers as musicians. There will be opportunities for students to perform with faculty at some of the events. Individual lessons can also be arranged. Topics like entrepreneurship are often discussed over dinner.
CONCERTS
Faculty will perform concerts in the early part of the week, and then the fellowship recipients begin performing mid-week. The festival has many ticketed concerts as well as several informal events, such as a live stream from Mr. Ed’s Pizza and an outdoor concert at the Castaway Motel overlooking the ocean. Both of these are very popular events and well attended.
COST
There are no fees for participation, however a $200 registration fee is required upon acceptance. RMF raises money to create this unique experience to support young musicians in this important stage of their careers. The cost of lodging, meals, and transportation to and from the airport is covered for all attendees. Transportation to Oregon is the responsibility of all participants.
CLIMATE
August on the Southern Oregon coast is very pleasant. It can be very windy. Temperatures range between 60-70, although on a sunny day it doesn’t feel cold. Most summers we have very good clear weather.
WHAT TO BRING
All attendees are asked to bring a music stand. Concert dress will be black pants/skirts and a single color shirt, colorful dresses, black shoes and socks. Please, NOT ALL BLACK for the ticketed concerts. This concert dress matches the venues we play in. Casual non-ticketed events can very causal.
AMENETIES
The small town of Port Orford is a vibrant community that enjoys the arts. It has the typical infrastructure of a coastal town, including a grocery store, gas station, a convenience store, as well as quite a few restaurants and art galleries. However, it has a population around 1000, so bring what you need and don’t expect that you can go to Walmart, as the closest one is an hour away (Coos Bay).
LODGING
Students will be housed in shared rooms in Port Orford motels, or in other housing provided by the festival.
TRAVELING TO OREGON
The largest airport closest to Port Orford is in Eugene, OR, which is three hours to the north. There is also an airport in North Bend, OR (just one hour north) which is much smaller. For those flying into Eugene, flights need to arrive before 2:00 pm on the first Sunday of the festival. The first event (faculty concert) is in Port Orford at 7:00 pm, and the participants are expected to attend. Those flying into North Bend need to arrive before 3:00. We will arrange travel for all participants back and forth from the airport.
