About Chamber Music on the Fox
Now in our eighth season, Chamber Music on the Fox presents programs that are small enough, flexible enough, intimate enough, to offer a rare taste of live performance even during a global pandemic! This season we are thrilled to be presenting some of the most sought after ensembles in the country, including Grammy Award winning Third Coast Percussion, Axiom Brass, and Quintet Attacca. We’ll offer programs honoring the legacy of Chicago’s Black history, paying homage to Mother Earth, and showcasing the music of Latin America. We’re also delighted to bring back a holiday concert this December.
We can’t wait to see you in the audience!
Mission Statement
The mission of Chamber Music on the Fox is to present engaging, enriching, and immersive performances and cultural experiences to Elgin and Fox Valley residents and enhance and enrich the cultural offerings of the area while maintaining the highest caliber of artistic excellence.
Sara Sitzer
Executive Director and Artistic Director
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Sara Sitzer, whose playing has been described as “rich” and “lustrous” by the Chicago Classical Review, is an active and versatile freelance cellist and entrepreneur in Chicago. A member the Elgin Symphony, Sara also performs regularly with orchestras and ensembles including the Milwaukee Symphony and Chicago Opera Theater, as well as on Broadway in Chicago. Ms. Sitzer is founding Artistic Director of the Gesher Music Festival in St. Louis, MO, and founding Co-Artistic Director of Chamber Music on the Fox in Elgin, IL. She spends her summers performing and teaching at the Wintergreen Summer Music Festival in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Sara holds performance degrees from the University of Wisconsin and Boston University, and completed a 3-year fellowship with the New World Symphony in Miami under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas.
Mark Fry
Director of Operations and Artistic Director
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Mark Fry is currently the acting bass trombonist of Lyric Opera of Chicago, as well as the bass trombonist of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Lake Forest Symphony and Chicago Philharmonic. Mr. Fry performs regularly with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony Orchestra, Joffrey Ballet, Chicago Sinfonietta and Chicago Opera Theater. He has performed with numerous orchestras in the United States, including Grant Park Orchestra, Colorado Symphony Orchestra, San Antonio Symphony, Charleston Symphony Orchestra, Britt Festival Orchestra (Oregon), Sarasota Opera, and Des Moines Metro Opera. In the summer of 2001, he performed in the orchestra of the Spoleto Festival in Spoleto, Italy. Before moving to Chicago, he was the bass trombonist of the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra in Honolulu. Mr. Fry has recorded with the Houston Symphony Orchestra, Mannheim Steamroller, New Black Music Repertory Ensemble and the Spoleto Festival Orchestra. In addition to being a founding artistic director of Chamber Music on the Fox, he is also the trombone instructor at Elgin Community College.
Kari Christensen
Outreach Coordinator
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Kari Christensen joined the CMOTF team in the summer of 2017. She also currently serves as the Director of Development and Community Engagement at the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestras. Other qualifications include graphic design for the purpose of promoting a variety of art related organizations; supporting youth related art activities for local art festivals; web design; and painting instructor. Promotional media includes promotion of YWCA’s Cinderella’s Closet, DNA of Elgin’s “Window Wonderland” (2013), various events related to Side Street Studio Arts, Shared Harvest Elgin Food Cooperative, Elgin 360 Photography Club, Boys & Girls Club of Elgin, and most recently Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra.
Board of Directors
Tish Calhamer, President
Mark Fry
Patricia Harkin
Elizabeth Niemeier
Martin Nobs
Sara Sitzer
Leslie Wolko
