Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music 2018 — “In the Blue Room with the Kronos Quartet”

by Sarah Morris
August 8, 2018

“In The Blue Room with the Kronos Quartet”

This annual tradition has really gained quite the following as part of the Cabrillo Festival. David Harrington, the first violinist and typically the speaker for the group, guessed that it was back in 1978 when they first collaborated with the festival. The San Francisco based group has always maintained strong political views and this concert was no different. They opened with a short piece by Egyptian composer, Islam Chipsy. Zaghlala, loosely translated as meaning blurred vision cause by strong light in the eyes, was full of glissandos and fast passages. Perhaps this choice of piece was a nod to the song and dance man in charge at the moment distracting from the real issues at hand. Friend of the festival, Missy Mazzoli, was up next with a piece named ‘Harp and Altar’ for string quartet and recorded sound. The recording began as low vocal intonations and grew stronger into full words, which began to overpower the sound of the quartet and eventually overtook them in prominence. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: 20th Century, 21st Century, Chamber music, String quartet

Ensō Quartet performs for Chamber Music Monterey Bay

by Lyn Bronson
April 8, 2018


Photo by Erica Horn

Passionate enthusiasm and youthful vitality added a heightened dimension to Chamber Music Monterey Bay’s presentation of the Ensō String Quartet at Sunset Center last night. The four young players, violinists Susie Park & Ken Hamao, violist Melissa Reardon and cellist Richard Belcher, are seasoned masters of their craft and treated us last night to some of the finest quartet playing I have ever heard. It was a remarkable combination of style, refinement and artistry in equally generous amounts. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: 21st Century, Chamber music, Chamber Music Monterey Bay, Classical Era, Romantic Era, String quartet

Decoda Ensemble earns ovation for “Gumboots”

by David Beech
February 25, 2018

Decoda, the pioneering Affiliate Ensemble of Carnegie Hall, is a group of young musicians with a mission. Not only do they perform a wide range of music (including modern works) for various combinations of instruments, they also bring their enthusiasm in other ways to the communities they visit. Prior to this concert at Sunset Center on Saturday evening, February 24th, 2018, they had given public master classes to several chamber music groups of Youth Music Monterey. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: 20th Century, Chamber music, Romantic Era, String quartet

Takacs String Quartet – Intense and Introspective

by Dr. Gary Lemco
February 25, 2018

Takacs String Quartet

A select but highly gratified audience welcomed the renowned Takacs String Quartet — Edward Dusinberre and Karoly Schranz, violins; Geraldine Walther, viola; and Andras Fejer, cello — to Stanford’s Bing Hall, Friday, February 23 as part of the Stanford Live series of concerts. For music of Schubert and Beethoven the Takacs performed independently; but for the imposing, Romantic Op. 1 of Erno von Dohnanyi, his Piano Quintet in C Minor, the ensemble enjoyed the inestimable talents of Marc-Andre Hamelin, who provided an exemplary complement in a work that well embraces a musical tradition established by Schumann and Brahms. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: Chamber music, Classical Era, Romantic Era, String quartet

Carmel Music Society – American String Quartet

by Lyn Bronson
February 12, 2018

Yesterday afternoon at Sunset Center in Carmel, we had an opportunity to hear the American String Quartet, one of the most celebrated ensembles in the world. The players — violinists Peter Winograd and Laurie Carney, violist Daniel Avshalomov, and cellist Wolfram Koessel — were at the top of their form and impressed us with their ability to breath new life into some very familiar masterpieces. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: Carmel Music Society, Chamber music, Classical Era, String quartet