2014-2015 Concert Series
Introduction to the 2014-2015 Season
Welcome to the 56th Season of Chamber Music Corvallis, a five-concert series featuring two new ensembles, the Morgenstern Trio and the Escher String Quartet, and three ensembles who were previously very warmly and enthusiastically received on their first visits to Corvallis, the Moscow String Quartet, the Alliage Saxophone Quintet, and the Auryn String Quartet. Many in our audience may recall, interestingly, that the Moscow and Alliage ensembles were last minute replacements!
The Moscow String Quartet, based in Denver, will be accompanied by a performer new to Corvallis, the Russian pianist Mykola Suk, who will join them in a piano quintet by Schnittke. The Morgenstern Trio are from Germany, as are the Alliage originally and the Auryn musicians. For the unfamiliar, four saxophonists and a pianist make up the Alliage Quintett. The Escher Quartet’s home town is New York City, where “the ensemble serves as Artists of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center….”
Our concerts are held in Austin Auditorium of the LaSells Stewart Center on the Oregon State University campus. Even though the venue with its 800-seat orchestra section is not ideal for chamber music concerts, ensemble musicians performing there since 1984 have been pleased and the audiences satisfied with the acoustics, in spite of its large size. The fact that the following internationally-reknowned ensembles have each performed at LaSells several times is testimony to the auditorium’s acoustic excellence: the Schubert Ensemble of London (6 concerts), Tokyo String Quartet (4), Emerson String Quartet (4), Takacs String Quartet (3), American Chamber Players (3), Juilliard String Quartet (2), and the Portland Baroque Orchestra (4). Concerts start at 7:30 p.m. and finish between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. Parking is readily available across the street from the Center.
The Moscow String Quartet, based in Denver, will be accompanied by a performer new to Corvallis, the Russian pianist Mykola Suk, who will join them in a piano quintet by Schnittke. The Morgenstern Trio are from Germany, as are the Alliage originally and the Auryn musicians. For the unfamiliar, four saxophonists and a pianist make up the Alliage Quintett. The Escher Quartet’s home town is New York City, where “the ensemble serves as Artists of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center….”
Our concerts are held in Austin Auditorium of the LaSells Stewart Center on the Oregon State University campus. Even though the venue with its 800-seat orchestra section is not ideal for chamber music concerts, ensemble musicians performing there since 1984 have been pleased and the audiences satisfied with the acoustics, in spite of its large size. The fact that the following internationally-reknowned ensembles have each performed at LaSells several times is testimony to the auditorium’s acoustic excellence: the Schubert Ensemble of London (6 concerts), Tokyo String Quartet (4), Emerson String Quartet (4), Takacs String Quartet (3), American Chamber Players (3), Juilliard String Quartet (2), and the Portland Baroque Orchestra (4). Concerts start at 7:30 p.m. and finish between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. Parking is readily available across the street from the Center.
Auryn String Quartet
Friday, February 27, 2015
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Haydn: Quartet No. 1 in C, Op. 64
Dvorak: Quartet in E flat, Op. 51 Brahms: Quartet No. 1 in C minor, Op. 51 “Beyond these moments of epiphany, the Auryns possess a sense
of latent power that creates a superb kind of musical tension, a rare ability to phrase with a kind of radiant Italianate grace and in hypnotic big picture arches, and to do so as with one voice...” — Gramophone About Auryn String Quartet and the artists. Program and Program Notes |
Escher String Quartet
Friday, April 10, 2015
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Smetana: Quartet No. 2 in D minor
Faure: Quartet in E minor, Op. 121 Schubert: Quartet No. 15 in G, D. 887 "The chamber music world is a cozy one, a circumstance that has drawbacks but also the undeniable advantage of allowing talented ensembles to make their way swiftly to the top. And the Escher quartet is excellent.” — Zachary Woolfe, New York Times
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Earlier this Season
Moscow String Quartet with Mykola Suk
Monday, September 29, 2014
Haydn: Quartet No. 2 in F, Op.74
Schnittke: Piano Quintet
Tchaikovsky: Quartet No. 2 in F, Op. 22
“...conquerors of a repertoire from Haydn to Schnittke...Life gushes forth pure and tremulous, filled with lyrical breath... messengers of poetry and transparency.” — Revue Belgique, Belgium
“Once again.. virtuosity and poetic qualities as well a specific musicality tinged with a hint of profound nostalgia.” — Le Monde, France
“...provocative program building and intelligent, truly musical virtuosity....big piano playing
in its most positive, emotionally generous manifestation.” — Gramophone
About the artists - Moscow String Quartet
About the artists - Mykola Suk
Schnittke: Piano Quintet
Tchaikovsky: Quartet No. 2 in F, Op. 22
“...conquerors of a repertoire from Haydn to Schnittke...Life gushes forth pure and tremulous, filled with lyrical breath... messengers of poetry and transparency.” — Revue Belgique, Belgium
“Once again.. virtuosity and poetic qualities as well a specific musicality tinged with a hint of profound nostalgia.” — Le Monde, France
“...provocative program building and intelligent, truly musical virtuosity....big piano playing
in its most positive, emotionally generous manifestation.” — Gramophone
About the artists - Moscow String Quartet
About the artists - Mykola Suk
Morgenstern Piano Trio
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
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Tailleferre: Piano Trio (1916/1917, revision 1978)
Shostakovich: Piano Trio No. 2, Op 67 Brahms: Piano Trio Op. 101 “The listener heard everything desirable in a chamber music concert: rhythm, precision, balance in sound and perfect intonation. Above all an organic unity in interpretation...” — Muenchner Merkur, Germany
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Alliage Saxophone Quintett
Friday, January 23, 2015
Two personnel changes in the Alliage Quintet - October 2014
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Bernstein: Overture from "Candide"
Rossini: Overture to "The Barber of Seville" Satie: Gymnopedie No. 1 Gershwin: An American in Paris Piazzolla: The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires Nagao/Bizet: Carmen Rhapsody “Four saxophonists and one pianist bring plenty of life to the Paris of the Belle Epoque...played with verve and virtuosity. ‘’ — Deutschland Radio About “Alliage” and the artists |
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