Water Music: Chamber Music at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum
November 13, December 11, March 5, April 16
4:30 and 7:00 each day
Minnesota Marine Art Museum
The Minnesota Marine Art Museum (MMAM) is pleased to announce the return of Water Music: Chamber Music at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, presented in partnership with the Winona Symphony Orchestra. Now entering its fifth season, Water Music brings together art and music through a series of four chamber music concerts performed in an intimate setting within the museum’s galleries. Each performance is designed to highlight both the visual treasures of the MMAM and musical masterworks connected by a shared theme.
New for the 2025–26 season, each concert evening will feature two performances, at 4:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Between the two performances, guests are invited to enjoy a reception in the MMAM atrium, featuring a treat prepared by the museum’s new Waterbar Café + Provisions inspired by the evening’s program, included with the ticket price. A cash bar will also be available. Guests are encouraged to come early or stay late to enjoy food, drinks, and conversation surrounded by art and music.
The Water Music season begins on Thursday, November 13, 2025, with Water Music: Epic Journeys, paired with the exhibition A Spectacle in Motion: The Grand Panorama of a Whaling Voyage ‘Round the World. The program will include Shostakovich’s Two Pieces for String Octet and Mendelssohn’s Octet for Strings, featuring guest violin soloist Nash Ryder and musicians from the Winona Symphony Orchestra and Apollo Chamber Music.
The second concert, Water Music: Christmas Concertos, will be presented on Thursday, December 11, 2025, paired with Alexis Rockman: Oceanus. The program will include Torelli’s Christmas Concerto, Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia on “Greensleeves”, and Corelli’s Christmas Concerto, performed by musicians from the Winona Symphony Orchestra.
On Thursday, March 5, 2026, MMAM will host Water Music: Quince Ensemble, paired with the exhibition Fluid: What is Marine Art and What Can it Be? This program will feature Zohn-Muldoon’s Destierros and Night and McKinley’s Ten Medieval Songs, performed by guest artists Quince Ensemble and violinist Erik Rohde.
The season concludes on Thursday, April 16, 2026, with Water Music: The Coast and the Sea, paired with the exhibition The Coast and the Sea: Marine and Maritime Art in America. This program will include new chamber works written for baritone Alan Dunbar, featuring Dunbar and guest musicians.
Single concert tickets are $30 for general admission, $25 for MMAM members, seniors, and active military, and $10 for students. Tickets may be reserved online at https://mmam.org/water-music. The Water Music series is presented by the Minnesota Marine Art Museum and the Winona Symphony Orchestra, and is supported by Your Classical MPR.
The Minnesota Marine Art Museum is a nonprofit art museum that creates meaningful art experiences that explore our relationship with water. Located in Winona, Minnesota, the purpose-built museum is located on the banks of the Mississippi River and boasts six galleries, an educational and events space, and a destination retail shop on its seven-acre riverside campus. It is through this surprising diversity that MMAM is not only describing what marine art is, but pushing the boundaries of what marine art can be.
The Minnesota Marine Art Museum is an organizational member of the River Arts Alliance. To learn more about the benefits of membership, please visit: riverartsalliance.org/membership/.
Image credit: Previous Water Music concert at MMAM, surrounded by the immersive art of Anne Labovitz, featuring Liz Pearse, soprano, and musicians of the Winona Symphony Orchestra.