"Music in the Rockies": Bravo! Vail, Anne-Marie McDermott, and Yulianna Avdeeva featured on Pianist magazine

Pianist magazine (October/November 2025)

Founded in 1987, Bravo! Vail Music Festival has grown from a small chamber-music series into a six-week orchestral festival, with supporting events, chamber recitals, and masterclasses. Erica Worth, editor of Pianist magazine, visited Bravo! Vail in the summer of 2025; she reports on this classical music haven high up on the Rocky Mountains for the October/November issue of the magazine.

“In contrast to European festivals which seem to attract a global public, the Vail vibe is decidedly American, at least for now. 'You're right, it's a domestic audience,' replied [executive director since Caitlin] Murray, when I raised the issue with her. 'However, Vail as a whole is an international tourist destination. We added our fourth orchestra almost a decade ago, with the aim of making the festival more international. In the 2025 season, we have had five orchestras from three continents. And in terms of the level and the quality of music that happens here, well - let's be "The American Verbier!"'

Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater

“A festival is only as good as its artistic director. At Bravo! Vail, it’s the charismatic American pianist Anne-Marie McDermott in charge... During that time, she has increased the visibility of female composers, and introduced composer-focused 'Immersive Experiences' as well as fully staged opera productions. In both concerts and masterclasses, she takes an active role at the festival as well as setting its tone.

“On my first evening, Yulianna Avdeeva made me sit up and listen with fresh ears to Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. This was a strong, muscular account from the outset, decisive and full-bodied... She brought a pearly touch to the slow movement when she took over from the opening flute solo, and in the third movement she demonstrated admirable imagination as well as technique when voicing the lyrical second thee, before really going for it in the torrents of octaves at the climax.”

McDermott (credit: Sophie Zhai); Avdeeva (credit: Kevin Kinzley)

Read the full piece here.