Vancouver USA Arts & Music Festival: Zukerman, Berg, and Schwarz Headline Free Concerts

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The free multidisciplinary festival takes place at Esther Short Park under conductors Brotons and Gerard Schwarz.

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The 2026 Vancouver USA Arts & Music Festival (VAMF) has revealed its full lineup of performers and programming for its free, three-day multidisciplinary festival taking place in historic Esther Short Park and downtown Vancouver, August 7–9, 2026. Presented by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA (VSO-USA) in partnership with the City of Vancouver, Washington, VAMF has established itself as the region's signature cultural event, bringing together music, dance, visual art, and interactive experiences performed and presented by a diverse range of artists who reflect the many cultures, stories, and creative voices that shape the region.

Each evening culminates in a free VSO-USA concert on the main stage in Esther Short Park. Featured soloists include world-renowned violinist Pinchas Zukerman, acclaimed pianist Shelly Berg, and celebrated cellist Julian Schwarz, performing under the direction of Music Director & Conductor Maestro Salvador Brotons and Maestro Gerard Schwarz.

The Vancouver Arts & Music Festival USA has grown to feature continuous daytime performances across the Music Stage, Acoustic Stage, and Dance Stage. (A full schedule follows.) Community Music highlights include reggae favorites Dub Lounge International, the family-friendly Ants Ants Ants, Brazilian-inspired The BrazilTones, the Cosmic Groove Orchestra, Cuban ensemble Dina y los Rumberos, and The Wild Lilacs. Dance performances include appearances by Yeates Irish Dance Academy, Hip Hop Soulsation Academy, Flamencas Silvestres, Blackbird Dance Company, Anavai O Te Ora, the NW Tibetan Cultural Association, and Teva Oriata Polynesian Dance.

The VSO-USA programs include the Friday evening, August 7, celebrating great film music including a Star Wars tribute to John Williams and favorite selections from Disney's Fantasia. Following Friday's concert, the festival will offer a screening of Fantasia (1940), as part of its Friday night movie series. On Saturday, August 8, VAMF presents the VSO Youth Virtuosi, USA, conducted by Maestro Ken Selden and Maestro Gerard Schwarz, a premier all-star ensemble made up of 60 exceptional student musicians from 11 Southwest Washington schools. On Sunday, August 9, Maestro Schwarz leads the orchestra in a program celebrating American musical voices, an official America250 event.

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On Friday, August 7, All Classical Radio President & CEO Fred Child will moderate a panel discussion exploring the role of the arts in the health and vitality of a community. Featured panelists include Rachel Smolkin, President and CEO, Oregon Public Broadcasting, composer Karen LeFrak , neuroscientist Dr. Larry Sherman , Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle, and leading conductor Maestro Gerard Schwarz. The panel is free and open to the public and takes place from 3 to 5 p.m. at the historic Kiggins Theatre in downtown Vancouver. Reservations are encouraged here .

In addition to the Friday night movie screening, there will be family-friendly activities and performances throughout the festival weekend. Pegasus Puppet Theatre will be at the festival all weekend inviting guests to decorate a gigantic dragon puppet and build dragon hats which will culminate in attendees marching in the Sunday, August 9 (10:30am) Dragon Parade. The acrobatic and absurd troupe Clown Garage returns for whimsical and thrilling pop-up performances throughout the festival. VAMF's Festival Art Exhibit showcases hundreds of visual artists from the Pacific Northwest and beyond, and the fun continues with additional family activities, street performances, and a wide range of food and art vendors.

Main Stage and Community Stages Programming (schedule subject to change)

11am-noon – Fadin' By 9 – Bluegrass 12-1pm: Strange Tones (Crime-a-Billy) 1-2pm: Fox Walker – Jazz 3-4pm: Ascension - Indie Pop Rock 4-5 pm: Dub Lounge International - Reggae

11am-noon: Pegasus Puppets Noon-1pm: Angel Ocasio 1-2pm: Yeates Irish Dance Academy 2-3pm: Dawn States Dance 3-4pm: Hip Hop Soulsation Academy 4-5pm: Flamencas Silvestres

Noon-1pm: Gina DeNoble - singer songwriter 1-2pm: Fiddler on the Loop - electric violinist expanded into a full band sound 2-3pm: David Calvario - Latin guitar 3-4pm: Brenna Larsen - singer songwriter 4-5pm: Jojo Gold - cello guitar Indie Folk

7 pm: Fantasia Reimagined – family movie night and music from American films Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA Salvador Brotons, conductor

Bach's Stokowski Toccata and Fugue in D minor Ponchielli's Dance of the Hours from "La Gioconda" Mussorgsky's “Night on Bald Mountain” Borodin's Polovtsian Dance from “Prince Igor” Dukas's “The Sorcerer's Apprentice” Williams's “Star Wars Suite”

Following the VSO performance, the festival will offer an outdoor screening of Disney's Fantasia (1940) in Esther Short Park.

10-11am: Ants Ants Ants - Kid Indie 11am-noon: The BrazilTones - Bossa Nova / MPB Noon-1pm: Fox & Bones 1-2pm: Cosmic Groove Orchestra - Funk / Soul / Jazz 2-3pm: Animala - Tiki and Polynesian music 3-4pm: Dina y los Rumberos – Cuban music

10-11am: Vietnamese Community of Clark County 11am-noon: Vancouver Ballet Folklorico Noon-1pm: Sarada Kala Nilayam 1-2pm: Blackbird Dance Company 2-3pm: Congruency Dance Collective 3-4pm: Anavai O Te Ora

11am-noon: Clark College Literary Students - Spoken Word Noon-1 pm: Jim Marcotte 1-2pm: Introducing the Machine - Acoustic Folk 2-3pm: Sasha Mae - Solo Performance 3-4pm: Mark Macminn - Original Folk

VSO Youth Virtuosi, USA Ken Selden, conductor Gerard Schwarz, conductor Julian Schwarz, cello

Sibelius's Finlandia, Op. 26 Bruch's Kol Nidrei, Op. 47, Julian Schwarz, cello Popper's Hungarian Rhapsody, Op. 68, Julian Schwarz, cello Bizet's Carmen (movements 5 and 7)

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Gerard Schwarz, conductor Pinchas Zukerman, violin

Beethoven's Egmont Overture Ben Haim's Berceuse Sfaradite, Pinchas Zukerman, violin Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1, Pinchas Zukerman, violin Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition

10-11am: Puppet Parade - All are welcome to join the parade 11am-noon: Zje - Mongolian Folk Noon-1pm: Mary Flower and the BBQ Boys - Ragtime Blues 1-2pm: Bang Bang - Brass / Drums 3-4pm: Under the Deku Tree - Funk Fusion Jazz / Video Game Covers

10-11am: Puppet Parade - All are welcome to join 11am-noon: Columbia Dance Noon-1pm: Vancouver Movement Collective 1-2pm: NW Tibetan Cultural Association 2-3pm: Dr. Sherrie Davis 3-4pm: Teva Oriata Polynesian Dance

10-11am: Puppet Parade - All are welcome to join Noon-1pm: Tanner Cundy - Acoustic Folk / Pop 1-2pm: Caryn Hart, Indie Americana 2-3pm: Trill LeBeau - Original Singer-Songwriter 3-4pm: The Wild Lilacs - Folk Americana

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Gerard Schwarz, conductor Julian Schwarz, cello

Shelly Berg, piano

Coleman's Umoja: Anthem of Unity Foote's Cello Concerto, Julian Schwarz, cello Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, Shelly Berg, piano Gershwin's An American in Paris

The 2025 VAMF was named Southwest Washington Event of the Year by the Washington Festivals and Events Association. Last year's event generated an estimated $1.8 million in business sales for the community, according to Visit Vancouver.

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/vancouver/article/See-Zukerman-Berg-Schwarz-in-Free-Concerts-VANCOUVER-USA-ARTS-MUSIC-FESTIVAL-20260605)._