Schenectady, N.Y. (Jan. 6, 2000) – The Emerson String Quartet, widely regarded as the premier quartet before the public, will perform with Edgar Meyer, double bass, and Wu Han, piano, at Union College's Memorial Chapel on Sunday, Jan. 16 at 3 p.m. as part of the Schenectady Museum-Union College Concert Series.
The performance, which represents the quartet's sixteenth Series appearance, will include a light-hearted pre-concert recital featuring Meyer, members of the Emerson, and Wu Han performing his compositions for double bass and piano. The concert program to follow is highlighted by Meyer's Quintet, written for the Emersons, and a performance of Schubert's great masterpiece, the Trout Quintet.
The complete program includes:
3 p.m.: Pre-concert recital: Handel/Meyer – Sonata for viola & double bass; Bartok – Duos for Two Violins; Rossini – Duo for cello & double bass; Meyer – Pieces for Bass & Piano
4 p.m.: Shostakovich – Quartet No. 1 in C, Op. 49; Meyer – Quintet; Schubert – Trout Quintet
The Emerson String Quartet, which takes its name from the great American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson, was founded in 1976. Members include Philip Setzer and Eugene Drucker, violins; Lawrence Dutton, viola; and David Finckel, cello.
Acclaimed for its artistry and dynamic performance style, the Emerson String Quartet has amassed an impressive list of achievements: an exclusive Deutsche Grammophon recording contract; four Grammy Awards – one for “Best Classical Album” and three for “Best Chamber Music Performance,” and Gramophone Magazine's “Record of the Year” award.
The New York Times has called the Quartet “one of the hottest quartets,” and praises its “consistently insightful, polished concert performances” and “series of brilliant recordings for Deutsche Grammophon.” The Financial Times (London) remarked, “As one of the foremost chamber ensembles around today, the Emerson provides a special kind of musical nourishment all too rare.”
The Quartet has an extensive 1999-2000 season. In the spring of 2000, the group will perform the complete cycle of Shostakovich Quartets in a five-concert series at both New York's Tully Hall and the Barbican Center in London. Also, the Quartet will participate in a Shostakovich symposium and collaborate with renowned director Simon McBurney in a theatrical work featuring Shostakovich's 15th Quartet.
The 2000 season includes performances at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. and the Hartt School of Music. Other North American venues include Chicago, Boston, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Seattle and Mexico City, among others. International highlights will be appearances in Paris, Zurich, Geneva and tours of Germany and Italy.
Prominently established as a master instrumentalist, and hailed by San Diego Magazine as “…quite simply, the best bassist alive,” Edgar Meyer's virtuosity and musicianship combined with his gift for composition has garnered him praise from audiences world-wide. Well known as a cross over artist, collaborations are a cornerstone of Meyer's work. From 1986-1992, he was a member of the progressive bluegrass band “Strength in Numbers,” whose members include Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Bela Fleck and Mark O'Connor. He also performs regularly as a guest bass player for an assortment of recording artists, such as Garth Brooks, Bruce Conklin, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Hank Williams, the Indigo Girls and Lyle Lovett.
Wu Han, orchestral soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician, has garnered a reputation as a performer whose impassioned music making and style are bringing new life to the concert stage. A frequent guest soloist with today's leading orchestras, she has performed at many of the world's most prestigious venues: London's Wigmore Hall; New York's Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center The Metropolitan Museum of Art and 92nd Street Y; and major points throughout Europe and Asia.
The Schenectady Museum-Union College chamber concerts are made possible, in part, by a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts and the Schenectady County Initiative Program. Memorial Chapel is located near the center of the Union campus. Parking is available on campus and on nearby side streets.
Tickets, at $20 ($10 for students), are available in advance at the Schenectady Museum (518) 382-7890 and at the door. For more information, call 372-3651.