The NEW YORK CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL - a 501(c)3 non-profit charitable organization, was founded in 2008 to celebrate chamber music, to recognize and support exciting new and established artists, to present premieres and special live performances, and to enhance awareness, accessibility and understanding of chamber music among broad and diverse audiences. Directed by violinist Elmira Darvarova (President and Artistic Director) and by the late great cellist Janos Starker (who was the festival’s Vice-President from 2008 until his death in 2013), the New York Chamber Music Festival has quickly established itself as one of New York’s premier and most prestigious music series, presenting free concerts and masterclasses with internationally-renowned artists, in addition to annual education events featuring children-composers in collaboration with the New York Philharmonic’s popular series “Very Young Composers”. Some of the world's most prominent musicians, such as the legendary singers Thomas Hampson and Samuel Ramey, as well as the world's #1 solo double bassist Gary Karr, are members of the Advisory Board of the festival (as was the late virtuoso violinist Ruggiero Ricci), while among the participants are such esteemed performing artists as Metropolitan Opera star soprano Carole Farley, MET Opera bass-baritone Morris Robinson, the world-renowned pianists Pascal Rogé and Vassily Lobanov, the cellist Christine Walevska, the violinist Rachel Barton Pine, the saxophonist Ken Radnofsky, the acclaimed pianists Simon Mulligan, Shai Wosner, Konstantin Soukhovetski, Anne-Marie McDermott, Bryan Wagorn, Scott Dunn, Linda Hall, Thomas Weaver, Zhen Chen, and many principal musicians from the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera, including Glenn Dicterow - legendary concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic, Anthony McGill - principal clarinetist of the Metropolitan Opera and the New York Philharmonic, Denis Bouriakov - principal flutist of the Metropolitan Opera and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, in addition to renowned chamber groups such as the New York Piano Quartet, New York Philharmonic Principal Brass Quintet, the Da Capo Chamber Players, the Escher String Quartet, the Amram Ensemble, the Amerigo Trio, the Delphinium Trio, the Delta Piano Trio, among many others.

 Prominent actors who have performed at the New York Chamber Music Festival include the “Law and Order” stars B.D. Wong and Tamara Tunie, John Ventimiglia and Frank Messina from “The Sopranos”, Oscar®-winner Estelle Parsons (“Bonnie and Clyde”). The United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor presented a speech at the 2011 New York Chamber Music Festival, honoring the 9/11 Tenth Anniversary during the Memorial Concert which took place at the New York Chamber Music Festival. Legendary tango and jazz musicians, such as Octavio Brunetti, Fernando Otero, Jon Faddis, Arturo O’Farrill, David Amram, the Turtle Island Quartet, have appeared at the New York Chamber Music Festival, in addition to world music icons such as the Indian sarod virtuosos Amjad Ali Khan and Amaan & Ayaan Ali Bangash. In its 10 years of existence the New York Chamber Music Festival has commissioned dozens of new music works and has presented over 100 world-premiere performances. The festival’s Composer-in-Residence is David Amram, who in the past was appointed by Leonard Bernstein as the New York Philharmonic’s very first composer-in-residence. In 2014 the American record label Urlicht AudioVisual released a commercially available CD recorded “live” at the New York Chamber Music Festival. Several national and international tours have been successfully realized by the New York Chamber Music Festival as visiting presenter throughout the United States, Canada, England, France and Italy. A regular collaborative relationship between the New York Chamber Music Festival and the Salieri-Zinetti International Chamber Music Competition in Verona (Italy) exists since 2011, whereby the competition winners are presented with a New York debut concert at the New York Chamber Music Festival.  Reviews by The New York Times and other prominent publications are published on a regular basis, reflecting performances and events at the New York Chamber Music Festival. “Chamber Music Festival Fills a Void” proclaimed Anthony Tommasini, a major critic at The New York Times, while Justin Davidson of the New York Magazine included the New York Chamber Music Festival in the Top Ten Classical Music Performances of 2012. Some of the most exciting young performers who are emerging as the new stars of tomorrow have been masterclass participants at the New York Chamber Music Festival -- such as the “rock star” violinist Charles Yang (recipient of the 2018 Leonard Bernstein award) and soprano Kirsten Chambers, who made a Metropolitan Opera debut shortly after being coached at the New York Chamber Music Festival. Bringing world-class artistry and exciting top-level performances and educational events in the most affordable way - through “free admission” - has become an important mission to which the New York Chamber Music Festival continues to dedicate its efforts and resources