Classical Music Fundraiser at The James

Presented in partnership with FilmScene, Sexual Assault Survivors at Iowa (SASI), The Bijou Film Board, and Honors Students for Unity and Progress, with venue support by The James Theater:

Please join us for a CLASSICAL MUSIC FUNDRAISER on September 13th! This exciting event brings together many community and campus organizations for a night of celebrating local musicians and supporting survivors. 

• Sunday, September 13th, 6:30-8pm
• The James Theater in Iowa City: 213 N Gilbert St, Iowa City, IA 52245

This event is open to all, with a suggested $20 free-will donation. Reserve your seat today here. 

ALL DONATIONS WILL GO TO DVIP/RVAP, TO SUPPORT SURVIVORS IN OUR EIGHT-COUNTY SERVICE REGION. 

Featuring: 

• Described as being “unafraid to be anything at all” and making “shadowy music that prickles on your skin”, Gabi Vanek is a bassoonist who exists in a world of drone, doom and noise. With her sonic interests often the aesthetic and tonal crossover of the latter with contemporary classical music, she has had the privilege of performing as both a soloist and ensemble member at small and large festivals, conferences, and series such as the Darmstädter Internationale Ferienkurse, International Double Reed Society, Oh My Ears, Feed Me Weird Things, and exhibited at the Osaka University of the Arts Electro-Acoustic Music Festival.
• Formed in 2024, Seamark Quartet consists of violinists Renee Santos and Sejin Byun, violist Oliver Bostian, and cellist Katie Forbush. They are coached by Prof. Elizabeth Oakes as an ensemble of the University of Iowa’s Chamber Music Residency Program. Seamark has worked with many quartets through the CMRP, including members of the Ariel, Attacca, Isidore, Telegraph, and JACK quartets. The quartet has also worked with composers such as Jessie Montgomery, Caroline Shaw, and Gabriel Kahane. In the summer of 2025, Seamark participated in the Summer Chamber Music Tour with Artshare, offering performances in communities across Eastern Iowa. In the summer of 2026, Seamark traveled to Prague as part of a collaboration between the Chamber Music Residency Program and the Lobkowicz Collection to study and perform at the Antonín Dvořák Birthhouse Museum.
• Founded in 1997, Red Cedar Chamber Music (RCCM) is dedicated to bringing unique and intimate chamber music experiences to audiences who have limited access to great music. Red Cedar’s mantra, “Chamber music should be just like this – intimate, bonding and conversational,” quotes a review in the American Record Guide. Cellist Carey Bostian, Artistic Director of Red Cedar Chamber Music, Carey was a member of Orchestra Iowa for 22 years, serving as Principal Cellist from 1998-2015, and has been the conductor of the Iowa City Community String Orchestra since 1998, serving on the conducting faculty of the Preucil School of Music. Violinist Miera Kim is an Iowa native and Executive Director of Red Cedar Chamber Music. Miera has previously held titled chairs with Orchestra Iowa and the Quad City Symphony Orchestra, has been concertmaster of the Iowa City Community String Orchestra since 2000 and the Sinfonia Nolte Nutcracker Orchestra since 2007.
• Cellist Jamie Clark of Boulder, Colorado has been praised for her sensitive, imaginative, and colorful sense of artistry. She has concertized throughout North America, South America, Europe, and Asia as a recitalist and a chamber musician. She has performed solo and chamber music recitals in venues such as Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Boston’s Jordan Hall, Eastman’s Kodak Hall, New York City’s American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Recently, Jamie received the Presser Foundation’s Graduate Music Award at the New England Conservatory, was a candidate in the 2015 Naumburg International Cello Competition, and was the Recipient of the George and Elsie Hodder String Scholarship for Doctor of Musical Arts Studies at the New England Conservatory.