Celebrating the 25th Anniversary Season

25 years ago, local artist Barbara Schwan had a vision for First Lutheran Church of Venice: to create a concert series of world class music for our intimate and acoustically glorious sanctuary. Each event would last one hour—a demitasse of high culture right in our own backyard—and we should find a way to make it free.

The vision became reality, and Masters in the Chapel was born.

Under Barbara’s artistic direction, Master in the Chapel has hosted members of the L.A. Philharmonic, the L.A. Master Chorale, quartets and trios and duets of global acclaim, vocal ensembles that offer a glimpse of heaven, organists and harpists—masters all who share stories of what the music they play means to them—select student performers from the Colburn School of Music, Thorton School of Music and Concordia University, and very special guests from an ever-widening network of gifted artists. 

Through generous funding from First Lutheran Venice and audience donations, we have been able to open our doors to hundreds of Venice locals to experience world class music in the beauty and peace of our chapel. Free. We hope you will join us this year as we begin our 2026/27 Season:

❈ Aeternum: California's Professional Vocal Ensemble
December 20, 2026, 4-5 PM

Described by San Francisco Classical Voice as "The Bay Area’s latest and greatest master chorus”, Aeternum is a professional vocal ensemble that brings together top choral singers from across the US and the UK.  The program will include dazzling arrangements of six centuries of music, ranging from the Renaissance to today's most exciting living composers, alongside Christmas favorites from the English choral tradition. 

❈ Elina Christova Plays the Piano Music of Scott Hiltzik
January 17, 2027, 4-5 PM

Elina Christova is a versatile pianist known for her deeply considered interpretations, technical mastery, and imaginative programming with an affinity for modern composers. Elina says of Scott Hiltzik’s piano music: “It has a refined and stylish quality one rarely encounters in the works of modern composers. Scott’s works stick to what music has always been about: an honest artistic rendition of the most poignant moments we call our life.”

❈ Piano Quintet with Martin Chalifour
February 21, 2027, 4-5 PM
This stellar ensemble will include Martin Chalifour and Ambroise Aubrun, violin; Kate Hamilton, viola, Cécilia Tsan, cello and Steven Vanhauwaert, piano.  The program will feature the Brahms Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34—the only piano quintet Johannes Brahms ever composed, often described as the “crown” of Brahms’s chamber music. 

❈ Nikolai Sivchuk Plays the Bayan
March 7, 2027, 4-5 PM
A rare opportunity to hear the bayan—a chromatic button accordion developed by the Russian Empire in the early 20th century—played with the skill and passion of a master.  Sivchuck, winner of the Coup Mondiale/World Accordion Championship, will present a program of classical and contemporary works that highlight the instrument's distinctive colors and expressive possibilities.