Bethany Beach Cellofest 2025
22-27 July 2025 | Bethany Beach, DE
🎶 Bach at the Beach
The Ultimate Summer Cello Experience
You're Invited!
Welcome to the Bethany Beach Cellofest
We're thrilled to invite you to the 2025 Bethany Beach Cellofest! Join us for a unique combination of intensive cello work and relaxation on the beautiful shores of Bethany Beach, Delaware.
Immerse yourself in the world of cello music at the beach with renowned cellist Professor Jennifer Kloetzel along with the Cello Museum's curators, Erica Lessie and Dr. Brenda Neece. In addition, we are thrilled to announce that Dr. Peter Wilson will be joining us for our Boardwalk performance as our MC and in performance along with Jennifer Kloetzel as The BrickHouse Duo!
The Bethany Beach Cellofest will be hosted by St. Martha's Episcopal Church, just a short walk from the beach.
The Delaware coastline is known for its beautiful beaches, tranquil environment, and welcoming community, and the family-friendly town of Bethany Beach provides the perfect setting for both intensive musical training and relaxation.
Bethany Beach is a unique place that quiets the mind, sparks creativity, and rejuvenates the spirit.
🎻 Cellists, We Have Payment Options!
We offer flexible payment options to help make your Bach & Beyond at the Beach experience more accessible.
✅ Payment & Refund Policy A $100 portion of all registration fees is non-refundable after May 15. No refunds will be issued after June 15.
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Sign up today!
$650.00
📌 Early Bird (through April 30) → $650 (paid in full)
📌 Standard (May 1 – June 15) → $750
📌 Late Registration (June 16 – July 10) → $875 (if space remains) -
Sign up today!
Register Today
✔️ Three-Payment Plan →$260/mo
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Sign up today!
Register Today
✔️ Two-Payment Plan →$385/mo
📍 What’s Included
✔️ Daily Cello Workshops & Coaching (~5+ hours per day)
✔️ One Private Lesson with a faculty member
✔️ Cello Ensemble Sessions
✔️ Performance Opportunities (Boardwalk Concert & Final Church Concert)
✔️ Bach & Beyond Masterclasses led by world-class faculty
✔️ Morning Wellness Sessions (Stretching/Qi Gong for Cellists)
✔️ Bethany Beach Cellofest T-shirt
✔️ Family-friendly schedule with built-in free afternoons
❌ What’s Not Included
🏡 Housing (see lodging suggestions below)*
🍽️ Meals
🎻 Cello Rental (optional)
✈️ Travel Expenses
*St. Martha's choir members have kindly offered several free beds during the festival for participating cellists. Please let us know if you want to apply for one of these.
🌟 Who Should Attend?
🎶 Intermediate to advanced cellists, including teachers (adults & mature teens*), looking for:
✔️ Masterclasses on the Bach Suites with expert faculty
✔️ Intensive learning in a supportive, non-competitive environment
✔️ New music inspired by Bach to expand their repertoire
✔️ A chance to participate in an adult cello retreat while enjoying a beach vacation
✨ Perfect for amateur musicians, educators, college students, and advanced teen* cellists!
* Advanced teen cellists must attend with a parent or guardian. No housing or supervision is provided for minors.
🏖️ Location & Travel
Bethany Beach, DE, is a charming beach town known for its relaxing atmosphere and vibrant arts scene.
🚘 Most attendees drive from DC, MD, VA, PA, NJ, and NY via:
- Chesapeake Bay Bridge
- Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
- Scenic route down the peninsula
✈️ Nearest airports: Salisbury (SBY), Baltimore (BWI), and Philadelphia (PHL) – all require car rental or shuttle service to reach Bethany Beach.
🏡 Housing Recommendations
Housing in Bethany Beach is in high demand during peak season. We recommend booking ASAP. Many participants bring their families for a beach vacation while attending the festival.
💡 Popular lodging options:
🏖️ Vacation Rentals → Search Airbnb, Vrbo, and Bethany Beach rental agencies
🏨 Hotels → Bethany Beach Ocean Suites Residence Inn By Marriott, Hotel Bethany Beach, and nearby options
⛺ Nearby Alternative Locations → Consider staying in Ocean View, Fenwick Island, Dewey Beach, Lewes, or Rehoboth Beach for more options
📌 Book early! Prices rise significantly closer to July.
🔗 How to Register
📅 Early Bird Deadline: April 30
⚡ Spaces are limited – register soon to secure your spot!
✅ Register Here
📧 Questions? Contact us here.
Festival Schedule
Weekly Overview
(TBC)
Monday, 21 July – 4 PM Welcome & Meet-and-Greet
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Tuesday-Friday, 22-25 July
- 7 AM Wellness Session (optional)
- 10 AM - 5 PM Cellofest Activities (lunch/rest break 12-2 PM)
- Tuesday Only: Lunchtime Bach concert by Jennifer Kloetzel at St. Martha’s
- Thursday Evening: Boardwalk Performance feat. Jennifer Kloetzel, The BrickHouse Duo, and Cellofest Cello Ensemble
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Saturday, 26 July
- 7 AM Wellness Session (optional)
- 10 AM - 12 PM Cellofest Activities
- Free afternoon for practice & beach activities
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Sunday, 27 July
- Final Concert at St. Martha’s during coffee hour (between morning services), followed by service music in the late morning service
- Farewell until 2026
Typical Daily Schedule for Cellists
(Tuesday-Saturday)
- 7 AM – Wellness Session (optional)
- Morning: Repertoire Session
- Lunch Break
- Afternoon: Ensemble Session
- Private Lessons: Each participant may schedule one 1-hour lesson with an instructor. Sign-ups open on July 21-22.
Family-Friendly Activities
While participants focus on cello, family members can explore:
- Beach time
- Miniature golf
- Nature reserves and parks
- Nature center
- Shipwreck museum
- Arcade
- Bookshops
- More local attractions!
Important Note:
This schedule may be adjusted based on the number of participants and their experience levels to customize the retreat and ensure the best possible experience for all participants.
🎻 Don't Want to Travel with Your Cello?
No worries—we've got you covered!
We offer rental cellos for the duration of Bethany Beach Cellofest for a small additional fee.
📌 Rental Fee: $100
📌 Limited Availability – Reserve Early!
After you register, you'll receive an information form where you can request a rental cello. We’ll then provide details on sizing and pickup.
We look forward to seeing you soon!
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Instructor(s)
Jennifer Kloetzel
Praised for her “impressively passionate performances” (The Strad) and “ceaseless musicianship” (BBC Music Magazine), cellist Jennifer Kloetzel has performed as soloist and chamber musician at Lincoln Center, the Ravinia Festival and San Francisco Performances. Her international credits include Harpa Concert Hall (Reykjavik), Izumi Hall (Osaka) and the Eroica-Saal (Vienna). Jennifer’s engaging programs offer audiences a surprising mix of repertoire by Shostakovich, Mel Bonis, Frank Bridge, John Williams, and Philippe Hersant. She has premiered over 80 solo and chamber works, including 5 concerti written specifically for her.
Fascinated with performance projects that create community, Jennifer’s ongoing Mission: Bach—The Road to Inspiration tour includes concerts at all 21 California Missions, performing the Bach Cello Suites and commissioned companion pieces. These concerts with conversation explore local history and musical connections across centuries. Her Inspired By America project brought a multi-media collaboration to large concert halls, exploring what it means to be an American through live chamber music combined with film.
Jennifer’s “Beethoven: The Conquering Hero,” (the complete works for cello and piano with Robert Koenig), was chosen as “Recording of the Month” by BBC Music Magazine in March 2022. Other highlights include recording Elena Ruehr’s Cello Concerto “Cloud Atlas” with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, as well as the entire cycle of Beethoven Quartets and Brahms Sextets. Jennifer has been featured regularly in both concerto and chamber performances on National Public Radio’s “Performance Today.” Among her 36 CDs, many have been broadcast on radio stations in South Africa, Romania, Brazil, Germany and Australia.
A Fulbright scholar, Jennifer holds two degrees from The Juilliard School, winning the institution’s top award at graduation. A founding member of the Cypress String Quartet, she now performs with QuartetES and Bow & Mallet, a jazz quintet. Jennifer serves as Professor and Head of the String and Performance Areas at the University of California Santa Barbara and she regularly offers master classes and workshops along with her mainstage performances.
Erica Lessie
Guest curator and researcher Erica Lessie is a freelance cellist in the Chicago area, working in a broad range of styles across many facets of the Chicago music scene. Erica has performed on the Oprah Winfrey show with both Whitney Houston and Seal, and has also appeared with Diana Krall, Andrea Bocelli, Peter Cetera, the Four Tops, and Johnny Mathis. She is an auxiliary member of the rock band Tributosaurus and co-founder of Cherchez la Femme, a musical ensemble dedicated to presenting the arts expressed by women across the millennia. Ms. Lessie also developed Cellos of Unusual Shape, a solo presentation that explores the diversity of variant cellos.
Currently, she teaches at DePaul University Community Music Division, King Music, and Waubonsie Valley High School while maintaining a private studio. She has composed duets for flute/cello and piccolo/toy piano and is creating a collection of short pieces for solo cello.
Ms. Lessie received a B.M. from Indiana University, where she studied cello with Fritz Magg and chamber music with Rostislav Dubinsky and James Buswell. At Florida State University she earned an M.M. and completed coursework for a D.M.A.
She currently resides south of Chicago.
Dr. Brenda Neece
[email protected]
Cello Museum founder and curator, Dr. Brenda Neece, DPhil (Oxon.), is a cellist and a researcher specializing in the history of the cello. Before starting the Cello Museum in the autumn of 2019, she worked as a freelance cellist and photographer and served for just over a decade as the first curator of the musical instrument collections at Duke University. In addition to playing the cello, doing cello research, and writing about cellos, she enjoys experimenting with variant cellos. In addition to her modern instrument, she also plays a 5-string baroque cello, a small 5-string cello, a folding prakticello, and an electric cello on a tripod.
Dr. Neece has loved Bethany Beach since her first visit in 1978 and spends as much time there as possible. She currently lives in Durham, NC, with her husband and cats. When not playing or writing about the cello, she enjoys photography and martial arts.
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