2013-14 Concert Season

HARLEM QUARTET
Monday, October 21, 2013

The Harlem Quartet, praised for its “panache” by the New York Times, is one of the most exciting string quartets on today’s musical scene. Since its public debut in 2006 at Carnegie Hall, the Quartet has performed extensively in the United States and abroad, most recently in South Africa under the auspices of the U.S. State Department. Its collaborations with distinguished performers include violinist Itzhak Perlman, pianist Misha Dichter, and jazz legend Chick Corea. In June 2012, together with the Chicago Sinfonietta, the Quartet gave the world premiere of Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story as arranged for string quartet and orchestra by Randall Craig Fleischer.
“From jazz to masterworks, string ensemble is clearly refreshing." – Marcio Bezerra, PALM BEACH DAILY NEWS
“They took my breath away in the same way that the bullfighter or bull would at the moment of truth…cool, groovy playing.” - James C.S. Liu, THE BOSTON MUSICAL INTELLIGENCER

photo by Anthony Parmelee

PACIFICA QUARTET with MARC-ANDRÉ HAMELIN piano
Thursday, November 14, 2013

The Pacifica String Quartet, recently named Ensemble of the Year by Musical America, returns to New Orleans for its 6th appearance. The Quartet has been designated as quartet-‐in-‐residence at the Metropolitan Museum of Art — a position held for 43 years by the legendary Guarneri String Quartet. One of the finest chamber ensembles performing today, the Pacifica is noted for its virtuosity, exuberant performance style, and often-daring repertory choices and was the recipient of the 2009 Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance. For this concert, the Quartet will be joined by pianist Marc-André Hamelin, renowned in equal measure for his fresh readings of the established repertoire and for his exploration of lesser-known works of the 19th and 20th centuries.
"They play with stupendous breathtaking virtuosity.”- THE TIMES (London)
"Hamelin's legend will grow - right now there is no one like him." - A lex Ross, THE NEW YORKER

ARNAUD SUSSMANN violin, with pianist TBA
Monday, December 9, 2013

Awarded a prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2009, violinist Arnaud Sussmann is quickly establishing a reputation for his multi-faceted and compelling artistry. As a soloist, he has performed throughout the United States and abroad and has earned the highest praise from both critics and audiences. Mr. Sussmann is also a dedicated chamber musician who appears on tour with the prestigious Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Two program. Born in France and educated at The Juilliard School, Mr. Sussmann studied with Boris Garlitsky and Itzhak Perlman, who chose him to be a Starling Fellow, an honor qualifying him as Mr. Perlman’s teaching assistant for two years.
“Sussmann has an old-school sound reminiscent of what you'll hear on vintage recordings by Jascha Heifetz or Fritz Kreisler, a rare combination of sweet and smooth that can hypnotize a listener.” – Ron Hubbard, PIONEER PRESS (Minneapolis/St. Paul)

photo by Christian Steiner

MISHA and CIPA DICHTER duo pianos
Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Duo pianists Misha and Cipa Dichter, who met while students at The Juilliard School, made their first joint appearance at the Hollywood Bowl in 1972, four years after their marriage. Since then, they have brought to the concert stage many previously neglected works of the twopiano and piano-four-hand repertoires. “An unmitigated delight” is how American Record Guide described the couple’s first recording — a three-CD album released by Musical Heritage Society in 2005. The album, which includes Mozart’s complete piano works for four hands, was named a “Recording of the Year” by Music Web International.
“…powerful performance…the Dichters showed remarkable unanimity of phrasing and virtuosic command…” - CHICAGO TRIBUNE
“(They) made Mozart’s Two-Piano Concerto ‘flow like oil’ - to use Mozart’s own laudatory phrase. The tone of both partners was unforced and sparkling without ever turning brittle. And their phrasing was as natural as conversation.” - SPOKANE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW

photo by José Luis Martínez - Madrid

ARIEL QUARTET with ALISA WEILERSTEIN cello
Monday, February 3, 2014

The Ariel Quartet, formed in Israel in 1998, moved to the United States in 2004 to continue its professional studies. They were graduated from the New England Conservatory’s Professional String Quartet Training Program and are now quartet-in-residence at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music. In 2006 they won the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and First Prize in the international competition “Franz Schubert and the Music of Modernity.” The Ariel regularly collaborates with major musicians and composers. Appearing with the Quartet will be the renowned young cellist Alisa Weilerstein, who greatly impressed our audience two seasons ago. She was named a MacArthur fellow in 2011.
“They crank out virtuosity by the bucketful and passion by the yard." - THE WASHINGTON POST
“(Ms. Weilerstein’s) technical abilities serve a taste for sweep and intensity; she performs with soulful expression and physical abandon.” - THE NEW YORK TIMES

I VIRTUOSI DELLE MUSE
Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Founded in Cremona, Italy, in 2004 by Stefano Molardi and Jonathan Guyonnet, the Baroque ensemble I Virtuosi delle Muse immediately received international recognition for its inventive and personalized use of period instruments and its adherence to historical accuracy of performance. They have appeared in the major concert halls of Europe, and their playing has been universally praised for its emotional intensity, theatricality, and extensive improvisation. The orchestra’s strength is the perfect synergy between Molardi, the conductor, who is in charge of musical and interpretative choices, and Guyonnet, who coordinates the strings and acts as liaison with the group’s musicians. For Friends, the ensemble will consist of six musicians and a soprano. The group’s recordings for Divox Antiqua and Tactus have received the highest praise.
“…these Virtuosi make use of quite eloquent Muses.” - LE MONDE DE LA MUSIQUE
“…Brilliant and full of energy … an explosion of colors that instantly amazes the listener.” - AMADEUS

photo by Christian Steiner

NEW YORK WOODWIND QUINTET
Wednesday, April 2, 2014

The New York Woodwind Quintet, one of the most respected of all American chamber music ensembles, has maintained an active performance schedule in the United States and abroad for almost 60 seasons, with periodic changes in personnel. Members of the ensemble, all internationally recognized performers and teachers, continue the Quintet’s 15-year-long residency at The Juilliard School, teaching individual woodwind students and woodwind quintets. The Quintet has commissioned and performed more than 20 compositions, some of which have become classics of the woodwind repertoire. They have recorded extensively on Nonesuch, New World Records, and other labels. As an ensemble and as individual performers, members of the Quintet appear regularly at summer festivals at Marlboro, Ravinia, Chautauqua and elsewhere.
“The Quintet plunged in with abandon, capturing the full-bodied flavors of the music.” - Joanne Sheehy Hoover, ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL
“They gave much and gave it in intelligent ways. Balances, ensemble, intonation, precision of detail — all were splendid.” - Bernard Holland, THE NEW YORK TIMES