HEIR - Heifetz Ensemble in Residence
The Spring 2022 Program

Inheriting the Past – Sustaining the Present – Defining the Future
INTRODUCING THE 2022 HEIRees!
After successfully conducting our inaugural HEIR: Heifetz Ensemble in Residence program in the spring of 2021, we are thrilled to announce the next cohort of exceptional young musicians who will join us here in Staunton, VA to study, teach, rehearse and perform together for concerts, classes, and outreach events under the Heifetz Institutes’ leadership.
The HEIR program extends and enhances our acclaimed Heifetz on Tour component, which offers real-world performance experience and outreach opportunities for these emerging artists, composed primarily of Heifetz alumni. But instead of hitting the road, presenting concerts and events under the Heifetz banner from Florida to Maine, HEIR will bring these artists back to “HeifetzLand.” Check this page frequently for concert announcements and updates!
Upcoming Events
Heifetz Memorial Day Hootenanny @ The Blackburn SummerStage
Blackburn Inn & Conference Center 301 Greenville Avenue, StauntonSummerStage @ The Blackburn gets the season off to a rollicking start in partnership with Staunton’s world renowned Heifetz International Music Institute and their all-star alums. PURCHASE TICKETS HERE ABOUT […]
Stars of Tomorrow I – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
Francis Auditorium 227 East Frederick Street, Staunton, VAEnjoy the Institute’s signature series—a showcase for breathtaking performances by extraordinary Heifetz students, featuring dazzling solo works in collaboration with our acclaimed Heifetz faculty pianists.
Stars of Tomorrow II – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
Francis Auditorium 227 East Frederick Street, Staunton, VAEnjoy the Institute’s signature series—a showcase for breathtaking performances by extraordinary Heifetz students, featuring dazzling solo works in collaboration with our acclaimed Heifetz faculty pianists.
Kids 12 and under free.
Market Street Musicale I – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
South Market Stage @ Grace Christian School 19 South Market Street, Staunton, VAOur free matinee shows feature powerful performances paired with informal conversations with our Heifetz students.
Celebrity Series I – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
Francis Auditorium 227 East Frederick Street, Staunton, VAExperience the world-renowned artistry of our virtuosic Heifetz Institute faculty members in carefully conceived 75-minute programs.
Heifetz Hootenanny I – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
Page Terrace 201 East Frederick Street, Staunton, VAOur informal Saturday series that features Heifetz students, staff, and special guests on one-of-a-kind multi-genre mashups.
Chamber Music Sunday Matinee I – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
Francis Auditorium 227 East Frederick Street, Staunton, VAAfternoons devoted to masterworks of the chamber music repertoire, with pride of place to the students in the Heifetz Chamber Music Seminar.
Independence Day Celebration – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
James Monroe's Highland 2050 James Monroe Parkway, Charlottesville, VACelebrate the holiday with fine fiddling and other music fit for the Glorious Fourth with a free, patriotic picnic concert at Monroe's Highland.
Stars of Tomorrow III – Heifetz 2022 Festival of Concerts
Francis Auditorium 227 East Frederick Street, Staunton, VAEnjoy the Institute’s signature series—a showcase for breathtaking performances by extraordinary Heifetz students, featuring dazzling solo works in collaboration with our acclaimed Heifetz faculty pianists.
About the Program
The Heifetz Institute is pleased to announce the resumption of our Heifetz Ensemble-in-Residence Program, or HEIR program, to take place in three sessions in 2022.
Winter/Spring 2022: Mar 6 – Apr. 24
Fall Session I: Sept. 4 – Oct. 29
Fall Session II: Oct. 30 – Dec. 24
Each of these residencies in Staunton will feature:
- Weekly intensive coaching sessions with Artistic Director Nicholas Kitchen
- A public concert series in and around Staunton and Shenandoah Valley
- Continuation of our “HeartStrings” program with Augusta Health, offering both virtual “bedside performances” and in-person performances. “This program has been made possible by Project: Music Heals Us through a PMHU Vital Sounds Initiative Grant.
- Private lesson and chamber-coaching opportunities via the new Crescendo program with Stuart Hall School
- Educational partnerships with the Shenandoah Valley Governor’s School and Mary Baldwin University
- Outreach, house concerts, run-out concerts, and other public and private events on behalf of the Heifetz Institute.
- Opportunities to record high-quality music videos in both a concert and studio setting
Selected Heifetz alumni participants will be formed into chamber ensembles for both solo- and chamber-ensemble performances. They will live and work in our home city of Staunton, VA for a two month period. Housing, meals, and salaries will be provided for the duration of the eight weeks. Intensive weekly rehearsal, performance, and production schedules will be prepared for the ensembles, augmented by the educational and outreach elements outlined above. Clear and strict policies regarding quarantine periods and social distancing will be enforced to ensure the safety of our artists and of our community.
The artists will work under the direct supervision of the Institute’s Artistic Director Nicholas Kitchen, exploring and performing both familiar and new repertory with an emphasis on underrepresented composers and artists of color, and the Institute’s management team led by President & CEO Benjamin K Roe, gaining valuable insight into the business side of the music world and a first hand view of arts administration. Live streamed performances will be arranged with cultural and educational partners, both regionally and further afield abetted by the Institute’s vast experience with professional quality live concert streaming. The HEIR participants will also work closely with our Multimedia Producers to prepare, curate, and assemble recorded performances that will broadcast via the Institute’s industry leading video platforms, including its YouTube channel with over 46,000 subscribers and more than 11 million views. If and when appropriate, live performances for small socially distant audiences will also be produced for the HEIR musicians, which will provide an invaluable resource to our region, which like so many others has been starved for access to high quality arts programming and the community it fosters throughout the pandemic.
Past Participants


2021 Session II Artists in Residence:
Kenneth Ryu Takebe Naito (Heifetz 2015-17, 2019, Heifetz on Tour), violin – Elkridge, MD
Adam Savage (Heifetz 2019-20), viola – Port St. Lucie, FL
Noelle Midori Takebe Naito (Heifetz 2016-17), violin – Elkridge, MD
Jingxuan Zhang (Heifetz 2018-19, Heifetz on Tour), piano – Durham, NC
Jared Blajian (Heifetz 2018), cello – New York, NY


2021 Session I Artists in Residence:
Julia Angelov (Heifetz 2019, Heifetz on Tour), violin – Washington, DC
Zhenni Li-Cohen (Heifetz on Tour, HeifetzPEG Faculty), piano – New York, NY
Matt Cohen (Heifetz 2012, 2013, Heifetz On Tour, HeifetzPEG Faculty), viola – New York, NY
Yezu Woo (Heifetz 2014, 2015, Heifetz on Tour), violin – Berlin, Germany
Coleman Itzkoff (Heifetz 2013, Artist in Residence, Heifetz On Tour, HeifetzPEG Faculty), cello – New York, NY
Noemie Raymond-Friset (Heifetz 2018, Heifetz On Tour, HeifetzPEG Faculty), cello – Quebec, Canada