ADRIAN — It’s one thing to hear classical music performed by a full orchestra in a vast concert hall. It’s quite another thing to have the up-close-and-personal experience provided when artists perform in recital in a smaller setting.

The Adrian Symphony Orchestra’s newest endeavor, a three-concert Summer Chamber Series, brings that much more intimate experience to audiences. 

The concerts, all of which begin at 7:30 p.m., are slated for Wednesday, June 25; Wednesday, July 23; and Wednesday, Aug. 27.

All three of the performances will be held in Holy Rosary Chapel on the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Motherhouse campus at 1257 E. Siena Heights Drive. Tickets are $25 per concert or $75 for series tickets. Student tickets are free of charge at the box office with a valid student ID.

Tickets and more information are available online at www.adriansymphony.org or by calling 517-264-3121.

All seating is general admission. A special reserved section is available to those who purchase tickets for the full three-concert package.

The June 25 concert features the acoustic string duo Warren & Flick. The pair — Jacob Warren on double bass and Grant Flick on violin, tenor guitar, and an instrument called a nyckelharpa — plays genre-blending original music that comes out of their expertise in everything from classical music and jazz to bluegrass and folk.

ASO Music Director Bruce Anthony Kiesling said that the pair was recommended to him by Danielle Belen, a member of the University of Michigan music faculty whose own Summer Chamber Series concert comes later on. Additionally, Warren previously played bass with the ASO.

“They’re attracting a lot of attention right now,” Kiesling said. With the duo’s focus on American musical idioms, even though they perform original pieces, “I think [the music] feels so familiar to people, and I think this will set a tone for the series.”

The summer’s second concert on July 23 features a performer who will be familiar to ASO audiences: pianist Dominic Cheli. Cheli wowed the orchestra’s audiences in recent years with two powerhouses of the piano repertoire, Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 and Rachmaninoff’s “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.”

For the upcoming chamber concert, he will perform arrangements for solo piano of Gershwin’s “An American in Paris” and “Rhapsody in Blue” and Bernstein’s “Candide Overture.’’

Belen, the UM professor who brought Warren & Flick to the ASO’s attention, wraps up the series on Aug. 27. Like Cheli, she has soloed previously with the ASO, performing the Bernstein “Serenade” a couple of seasons ago.

Her recital, for which she will be joined by pianist Sarina Zhang, features contemporary American music, in the form of Jessie Montgomery’s Rhapsody No. 1, and French Impressionist music with Debussy’s Sonata for Violin and Piano.

Kiesling said the series was born out of discussions the ASO has had for several years about how to expand into some offerings in the summer. Then the Charlene Bloomfield estate approached the orchestra about helping get a chamber series started that students could attend at little to no cost. Hence, the free admission for students.

Donors have been able to attend recitals by the ASO’s guest artists for a long time now and those “have been wonderful events,” Kiesling said. “But we wanted to have a wider audience able to be there,” and this new series allows that to happen.

Chamber performances give audiences a unique perspective because they get to sit much closer to the action than is possible when a larger ensemble plays in a concert hall. For this series, “people can be close to the music-making and have a really intimate experience,” Kiesling said.

And the setting itself will be a huge part of the concert experience. 

“Holy Rosary Chapel is such a stunning place, and on a Wednesday evening in the summer, with the light coming through those stained-glass windows? I can’t wait,” he added.

For these concerts, audiences can generally expect a first half that’s about 30 minutes long and contains the more formal concert fare, then after the intermission a shorter second half where they can learn more about the artists and hear some lighter pieces.

Kiesling said there’s been a lot of interest in the series ever since it was announced at this season’s final classical-music concert back in May, along with the unveiling of the orchestra’s 2025-26 season.

“People are really excited about this,” he said. “It gives them another option for the summer. And it allows us to get some [guest musicians] back here, develop some relationships with these young soloists, and deepen our connection with our community.”