The Arts Council of Moore County announces the 29th season of the Classical Concert Series (CCS). Since its beginning, the series has grown into one of the most respected chamber music series in North Carolina, by both audiences and artists. "Sponsored by the Jefferson Inn, this series is usually sold out on subscription, but a few seats still remain, so get your tickets now," says Chris Dunn, executive director of the ACMC.

To open the 2010-2011 series, CCS will present Van Cliburn-winning pianist Jose Feghali Monday, Oct. 4. Winner of the Gold Medal at the 7th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Feghali has since been a major presence on the concert stage worldwide. A child prodigy in his native Brazil, he made his recital debut at the age of 5 and concerto debut three years later with the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra.

Highlights of Feghali's career include recitals on the most prestigious stages in the world, such as Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center and Chicago's Orchestra Hall; concerts with the world's best orchestras, such as the London Symphony, Berlin Philharmonic and Chicago Symphony; and collaborated in chamber music performances with some of the most renowned artists, such as James Galway and Andre Watts.

The series' second performance will feature the string sextet Concertante Monday, Nov. 8. Comprising a core of six virtuoso string players, the group has acquired a sheen, warmth and polish that are the hallmark of superb chamber music groups.

As solo performers who have won major national and international music competitions, they have graced the premier stages of the world from New York's Carnegie Hall to London's Royal Festival Hall to Shanghai's Grand Theatre. As an ensemble, Concertante has performed across America, gathering rave reviews from such publications as The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post, and appearing on Minnesota Public Radio's St. Paul Sunday.

Clarinetist Jose Franch-Ballester will perform Monday, Feb. 14. Born in Spain into a family of clarinetists and Zarzuela singers, Franch-Ballester began clarinet lessons at the age of 9 and gave his first recital at the age of 16. After graduating from the Joaquin Rodrigo Music Conservatory in Valencia, he came to the U.S. to study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

Since winning the Young Concert Artists International Auditions, Franch-Ballester became a member of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's CMS II, was selected by Carnegie Hall for master classes with Emanuel Ax and Richard Stoltzman, performed in Carnegie's Weill Hall and was awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant. He is also in demand for numerous festivals all over the world, including Chamber Music Northwest in Oregon, Usedomer Musikfestival in Germany, Verbier Festival in Switzerland and the Young Concert Artists Festival at Nexus Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

The series will conclude in a flourish Monday, March 14, with a performance by violinist Alina Ibragimova. Born in Russia, she is a former pupil of the Moscow Gnesin and Yehudi Menuhin schools, and the Royal College of Music in London.

With a repertoire extending from baroque to contemporary works, Ibragimova's recent engagements have included her BBC Proms debut with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Philharmonia and the City of Birmingham Symphony. She made her debut as soloist/director with the Kremerata Baltica during Salzburg Mozartwoche 2005, and has since performed with the Kremerata and Gidon Kremer at Salle Pleyel Paris, Mozartwoche and the Salzburg, Verbier and MDR Musiksommer festivals.

The subscription price is $80 per person for all four concerts for Arts Council members ($90 for nonmembers). All concerts will be presented at 8 p.m. at the Sunrise Theater in Southern Pines.

In addition to the concerts, the Jefferson Inn is offering a pre-concert dinner in its restaurant, One Fifty West, located less than a block from the Sunrise Theater at 150 W. New Hampshire Ave. For $38 per person (tax and gratuity included), diners will receive a delicious meal and a choice of the prime downtown parking places since they will be in town early. Reservations for the dinners are required and can only be made by calling the Arts Council at (910) 692-2787.

To purchase a subscription, pick up a season brochure from the Arts Council of Moore County offices at Campbell House (482 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines) or call (910) 692-2787 to receive a brochure in the mail.

For additional information, visit www.mooreart.org.