Repertoire 2020-2021

*Only offered beginning Jan. 2021, others are available Fall 2020

Barber: String Quartet

Bartok: String Quartet no.5*

Brahms: String Quartet 3

Eugene Drucker: “Series of Twelve”

Dvorak: String Quartet no.12 “American”

Haydn: String Quartet op.1 no.1, op.20no.2, op. 77 no. 2

Hannah Lash: New commission (inspired by Bartok)

Mozart: String Quartet K.458 “The Hunt”

Janacek: String Quartet No.1 "Kreutzer Sonata"*

Korngold: String Quartet no. 3*

Puccini: Crisantemi

Schubert: Quartettstaz, String Quartet no.15 in G* Schumann: String Quartet No. 3

Shaw: Three Essays

Shostakovich: String Quartet no. 9, String Quartet no. 12

Widmann: String Quartet #3 “Jagdquartett”

Wolf: Italian Serenade

Fall 2020 Programs

New CD: “Babel”: Release Fall 2020

Schumann: String Quartet op. 41 no. 3

Shaw: “Three Essays”: Nimrod, Echo, Ruby * world premiere recording

Shostakovich: String Quartet #9 op. 117

This program explores the crossroads of language and music. Caroline Shaw’s “Three Essays” take inspiration from the artistry of great novelists but also serve as a social critique of the misuse of language as channeled through social media. While Schumann and Shostakovich’s quartets speak in the absence of words. Whether because of censorship or using music to convey the language of love, these works enabled composers to evoke that which they could not speak.  

“The Thrill of the Hunt”

Haydn: String Quartet op.1 no. 1

Mozart: String Quartet K.458 “Hunt”

Widmann: String Quartet no. 3 “Jagdquartett”

Brahms: String Quartet no. 3

Horn calls abound in this program that evokes one of mankind’s oldest pastimes. The program is a jaunty ride through history with hallmarks of Viennese classicism and romanticism represented as well as Jorg Widmann’s satirical and edgy third quartet.

Spring 2021 Programs

"From the New World”

Dvorak: String Quartet no. 12 "American"

Barber: String Quartet

Korngold: String Quartet no.3

European composersdrew inspirationfrom the colorful musical tapestry of the United Statesthroughout the 19th and 20th centuries.During Dvorak's tenure in the US he was fascinated by African-American spirituals as well as thenatural and mechanical hum of America. His most famous string quartet was composed during a holiday in the plains of Iowa. Korngold escaped the oppressive forces of 1930's Europe to come work in Hollywood. Though the resulting music redefined the movie industry, Korngold still continued composing serious concert music. This program features his final brilliant yet neglected string quartet. The American composer Samuel Barber's only string quartet is one of the most celebrated for its second movement, the unofficial American anthem of mourning, the Adagio for Strings.

"Schubert in Bohemia”

Dvorak: String Quartet #12 “American”

Janacek: String Quartet No.1 "Kreutzer Sonata”

Schubert: String Quartet No.15

Dvorak championed and revered the works of Franz Schubert. This program explores the lyrical style and folk aesthetic shared between Schubert and Dvorak and features the rich Bohemian chamber music tradition that resulted.

“Songs without Words”

Barber: String Quartet

Drucker: Series of Twelve

Schubert: String Quartet No.15

Barber’s iconic Adagio, Schubert’s final and grandest quartet, and a new work by Emerson String Quartet violinist and composer Eugene Drucker come together in a program that brings vocal music to the forefront.