In 2008-2009, the Endellion String Quartet celebrated its Thirtieth Anniversary Season. The occasion marked by the release of a boxed set of the complete Beethoven string quartets (Warner Classics); new commissions of Six Quartettini from Robin Holloway and a new piece from Roxanna Panufnik and the poet Wendy Cope; involvement in Phil Grabsky’s new documentary film, ‘In Search of Beethoven’; a series of performances of Haydn’s Seven Last Words incorporating the Endellion’s commission of Andrew Motion’s words written especially for this piece, and concerts throughout the UK, and in Europe, China, Japan and Korea.

Program

Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
String Quartet in E-flat major, Opus 33 No. 2 (The Joke)

1. Allegro moderato
2. Scherzo: Allegro
3. Largo
4. Presto

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)
String Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Opus 110

1. Largo
2. Allegro molto
3. Allegretto
4. Largo
5. Largo

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet No. 7 in F major, Opus 59, No. 1

1. Allegro
2. Allegretto vivace e sempre scherzando
3. Adagio molto e mesto-attacca
4. Theme Russe. Allegro

The Endellions continue their Residency at Cambridge University which began in 1992, and they will be involved in special celebratory concerts at the University which in 2009 celebrates its Eight Hundredth Anniversary coinciding with the Endellions’ Thirtieth.

Program

Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
String Quartet in G major, Opus 76 No. 1

1. Allegro con spirito
2. Adagio sostenuto
3. Menuetto. Presto
4. Allegro ma non troppo

Leoš Janáček (1854-1928)
String Quartet No. 1, “Kreutzer Sonata”

1. Adagio- Con moto
2. Con moto
3. Con moto-Vivo-Andante
4. Con moto- Adagio

Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
String Quartet No. 14 in D minor (Death and the Maiden)

1. Allegro
2. Andante con moto
3. Scherzo: Allegro molto
4. Presto

The St. Petersburg String Quartet was founded in 1985 as the Leningrad Quartet by Alla Aranovskaya, Alla Krolevich (Goryainova) and Leonid Shukayev, all three graduates of the Leningrad Conservatory. The Quartet blazed a trail through international chamber music competitions, winning First Prize at the All-Soviet Union String Quartet Competition, the Silver Medal and a Special Prize at the Tokyo International Competition of Chamber Ensembles, First Prize and both Special Prizes at the Vittorio Gui International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Florence, Italy, and First Prize and the "Grand Prix Musica Viva" at the International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Melbourne, Australia.

Program

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
String Quartet No. 17 in B-flat Major, K. 458 “The Hunt”

Chopin Piano Music
by Richard Dowling

Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky
String Quartet No.2 in F Major, Opus 22

In 1988, second violinist Alla Krolevich immigrated to Israel but in October 2005 re-joined the Quartet. Violist Boris Vayner joined the Quartet in January of 2005.

When the city of Leningrad resumed its historic name, the Quartet changed its name to the St. Petersburg String Quartet. In 2008 St. Petersburg Quartet will played in the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Audiences from Toronto to Tokyo, from Lithuania to London and in music halls across the United States give the St. Petersburg Quartet standing ovations.

Program

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet No. 6 in B-flat Major, opus 18. no. 6

Dmitri Shostakovich:
String Quartet No. 9 in E flat major, opus 117

Frédéric Chopin
Piano Concerto No.1 in E minor, Op 11 (arranged for string quartet)

Synergy Brass Quintet performs more concerts than anyone in classical music today, averaging nearly 300 engagements per year. Acclaimed for “a veritable fireworks display of outstanding musical ability combined with superb showmanship” (Door Concerts,Inc) in addition to “blazing precision [and] amazing technique” (The Watertown Daily Times), the Synergy Brass Quintet has emerged as one of the world's most exciting ensembles. Synergy "has hit on a magical approach...unadulterated exuberance, and a rock star approach of performing," (U.S.1). Their engagements have taken them to every corner of the United States including the Ravinia Music Festival in Illinois, the Bethlehem Musikfest in Pennsylvania, the Tanglewood Music Festival in Massachusetts, and internationally at the Festival de Musica de Camara de Aguascalientes.

Synergy Brass Quintet further educates musicians by presenting master classes and events at colleges and conservatories including The Boston Conservatory, Manhattan School, Rice University, University of North Texas, Northwestern University, the San Francisco Conservatory, Arizona State University, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), Eastman School of Music, and more. Having served as Quintet-in-Residence at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, Synergy was commended for their “energy and dedication and musicianship.” Other residencies include the International Festival at Roundtop and the Rockport Chamber Music Festival. These workshops, clinics, residencies and master classes enable the Synergy Brass Quintet to inspire a passion for music in the next generation.

The Escher String Quartet has received acclaim for its individual sound, inspired artistic decisions and unique cohesiveness. The Quartet has performed at prestigious venues and festivals across the United States including Lincoln Center, the 92nd Street Y and Symphony Space in New York, Boston's Gardner Musuem, the Ravinia and Caramoor Festivals, Music@Menlo and La Jolla SummerFest; and has collaborated with eminent artists such as Lawrence Dutton, Leon Fleisher, Lynn Harrell, Jeffrey Kahane, Joseph Kalichstein, David Shifrin and Pinchas Zukerman.

Program

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
String Quartet No. 19 in C Major, K. 465 “The Dissonance”

1. Adagio-Allegro
2. Andante cntabile
3. Menuetto. Allegro
4. Allegro molto

Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
String Quartet No. 4

1. Allegro
2. Prestissimo, coon sordino
3. Non troppo lento
4. Allegretto pizzicato
5. Allegro molto

Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)
String Sextet, Verklärte Nacht (Transfigured Night), Op. 4

Within months of its inception in 2005, the Escher was invited by both Pinchas Zukerman and Itzhak Perlman to be the quartet-in-residence at each artist's summer festival: The Young Artists Programme at Canada's National Arts Centre and The Perlman Chamber Music Program on Shelter Island, NY.

Program

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet in A minor, Opus 132

1. Assai sostenuto- Allegro
2. Allegro ma non tanto
3. Molto Adagio- Andante- Heiliger Dankgesang eines Genesenen an die Gottheit, in der lydischen Tonart
4. Alla Marcia, assai vivace (ttacc)
5. Allegro appassionato- Presto

Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
String Quartet No. 6

1. Mesto- Vivace
2. Mesto- Marcia
3. Mesto- Burletta
4. Mesto- Molto tranquillo

Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
String Quartet in G minor, opus 10

1. Animé et très décidé
2. Assez vif et bien rythmé
3. Andantino, doucement expressif
Très modéré - En animant peu à peu - Très mouvementé et avec passion

The Poulenc Trio brings together three uniquely gifted virtuosos, oboist Vladimir Lande, bassoonist Bryan Young, and pianist Irina Kaplan Lande. Combining brilliant 21st-century vibrancy with the best of European instrumental tradition, the trio's performances leap beyond the ordinary concert experience, transporting audiences into a world of beautiful sonorities, playful rhythms and dramatic excitement.

The Carlos Chavez String Quartet is a Mexican based string quartet (previously known as "The Russian American String Quartet") founded by cellist Alain Durbecq in 1994. The quartet currently resides in Mexico City and performs a broad spectrum of mainstream classical music repertoire while maintaining a high profile in promoting Mexican music from the baroque era to contemporary times. Laura Klugherz joins the Carlos Chavez Sting Quartet as guest violist during the festival. She gave her debut at Carnegie Hall in 1989 to great reviews. She studied in Europe with a Fulbright scholarship, where she became concert soloist with the Munich Bach Orchestra and Chamber Music Orchestra. She is currently a professor at Colgate University.

Program

The Poulenc Trio

Dmitri Shostakovich Romance, op. 97a (from film score of "The Gadfly")
A Spin Through Moscow (From the operetta "Moscow-Cheryomushki" op. 105)
Saint-Saens Sonata for bassoon and piano
Rimsky-Korsakov Dnco of "Skomarokhi" from the opera "Snow Maiden"
Francis Poulenc Trio for Oboe Bassoon and piano

Intermission

Cuarteto Carlos Chavez

Guadalupe Olmedo (1853-1889)
Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940)

The Miró Quartet, one of America's highest-profile chamber groups enjoys its place at the top of the international chamber music scene garnering praise from audiences and critics alike. Founded in 1995 at the Oberlin Conservatory, the Miró Quartet met with immediate success winning first prizes at the Coleman, Fischoff, and Banff competitions as well as the prestigious Naumburg Chamber Music Award.

Program

Samuel Barber (1910-1981)
String Quartet, Op. 11

1. Molto Allegro e Appassionato
2. Adagio
3. Molto Adagio- Presto

Kevin Puts (b. 1972)
Credo for String Quartet (2007)

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat major, Opus 130
Große Fuge in B-flat major, Opus 133

1. Adagio, ma non troppo- Allegro
2. Presto
3. Andante con moto, ma non troppo. Poco scherzoso
4. Alla danza tedescaa. Allegro assai
5. Cavatina. Adagio molto espressivo
6. Große Fuge: Overtura- Allegro- Fuga

The Miró Quartet was also a recipient of the Cleveland Quartet Award and was the first ensemble ever to be awarded the Avery Fisher Career Grant. Regularly invited to perform at the world’s most celebrated concert halls, the Miró Quartet has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Berlin Philharmonic’s Kammermusiksaal, and Amersterdam’s Concertgebouw among many others.

Program

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet No. 5 in A major, opus 18, no. 5

1. Allegro
2. Menuetto
3. Andaante cantabile
4. Allegro

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, opus 95 “Serioso”

1. Allegro con brio
2. Allegretto ma non troppo attacca subito:
3. Allegro assai vivace ma serioso; piu allegro
4. Larghetto espressivo; Allegretto agitato; Allegro

Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
String Quintet in C major, op. posth. 163 (Alain Durbecq, cello)

1. Allegro ma non troppo
2. Adagio
3. Scherzo. Presto- Trio. Andante sostenuto
4. Allegretto

A favorite of summer music festivals, the Quartet has frequently appeared at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Chamber Music Northwest, and the Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival. Deeply committed to music education, the Miró Quartet is currently the Faculty String Quartet-in-Residence at the Sarah and Ernest Butler School of Music at the University of Texas at Austin.

Program

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet in F major, Opus 14, No. 1 (Beethoven’s arrangement of the Piano Sonata No. 9 in E major)

1. Allegro
2. Allegretto
3. Rondo- Allegro comodo

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Piano Quintet in G Minor, opus 57

1. Prelude: Lento
2. Fugue: Adagio
3. Scherzo: Allegretto
4. Intermezzo: Lento
5. Finale: Allegretto

Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Piano Quintet in A major, Opus 114 (Die Forelle- The Trout)

1. Allegro vivace
2. Andante
3. Scherzo: Presto
4. Andantino- Allegretto
5. Allegro giusto

First & second place winners of the 2010 Rising Star Award, 6:00 p.m. and the Rising Stars’ chamber music orchestra. FREE