Segerstrom Center's Chamber Music Series Presents the Szymanowski Quartet Tonight

Segerstrom Center's Chamber Music Series continues tonight, January 31, 2015 with the acclaimed Szymanowski Quartet. For its third appearance, the Warsaw-based ensemble will perform traditional, popular and rare works by Polish composers Marcin Leopolita, Wac?aw of Szamotu?y, Krzysztof Penderecki and Graz?yna Bacewicz. Pianist Joseph Kalichstein makes his Center debut performing Chopin's Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52 and Dvor?a?k's Piano Quintet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 8. There will be a free Preview Talk by musicologist and author Herbert Glass at 7:15 p.m. in Samueli Theater.

The New York Times declares, "It is hard not to fall in love with the Szymanowski Quartet." The ensemble includes Agata Szymczewska, violin; Grzegorz Kotow, violin; Vladimir Mykitka, viola and Marcin Sieniawski, cello. During this performance, the Szymanowski will continue the exploration of works by Graz?yna Bacewicz that it began during its last visit to the Center. Bacewicz achieved rare international fame as a female Eastern European composer. "String Quartet No. 4 by Graz?yna Bacewicz is one of the most popular and often-performed string quartets in Poland," says violinist Kotow.

Tickets for Szymanowski Quartet and Joseph Kalichstein start at $29 and are now available online at SCFTA.org, at the Box Office at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa or by calling (714) 556-2787. The TTY number is (714) 556-2746.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts applauds the Colburn Foundation for its support of the Chamber Music Series with special underwriting for this engagement from Sam B. Ersan. Kia is the Official Automotive Partner of the Center and United Airlines is the Official Airline of the Center. Classical KUSC is the Media Partner of the Chamber Music Series.

Founded in Warsaw in 1995, the Szymanowski Quartet has developed into one of the most exceptional international string quartets of its generation. Its sophisticated programs present a perfect balance between intellect and passion, characteristics with which the Szymanowski Quartet captivates audiences at prestigious festivals and concert halls in Europe, the United States, Asia, Australia and South America.

The Quartet's extraordinarily high standard has been confirmed by numerous awards and distinctions. They took first prizes at the Premio Vittorio Gui Competition in Florence and the In Memoriam Dimitri Shostakovich in Hanover. They were prizewinners at the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition and at the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition. From 2001 to 2003, the Szymanowski Quartet participated in the New Generation Artists Scheme of BBC Radio 3 in London. In 2005, they were honored with the Szymanowski Award of the Karol Szymanowski Foundation in Warsaw, the only time ever given to a string quartet. In 2007, they were awarded the Medal of Honor by the Polish government for their service to Polish culture.

In spring 2009, the Quartet launched the record label CAvi-music, which focuses on their namesake, composer Karol Szymanowski, in the context of three music capitals: Paris, Vienna and Moscow. Recent recordings include the Shostakovich and Weinberg quintets for Ha?nssler Classic and music of Zelenski and Zarebski released on Hyperion in December 2012. They were the cover feature for the February/March 2012 issue of Ensemble Magazine.

The Szymanowski Quartet studied at the Hochschule fu?r Musik und Theater in Hanover with their teacher and mentor Hatto Beyerle. They continued to refine their performances working with Isaac Stern, Walter Levin and the following quartets: Amadeus, Emerson, Juilliard and Guarneri. They have been Quartet in Residence Musikhochschule Hanover since 2000.

Joseph Kalichstein is acclaimed for the heartfelt intensity and technical mastery of his playing. He enthralls audiences all over the globe, winning equal praise as orchestral soloist, recitalist and chamber musician. As an Australian critic exclaimed, "To hear Kalichstein play is to fall in love with music all over again!"

Kalichstein's diverse repertoire ranges from Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms to 20th century works by Bartok, Prokofiev and others. He has collaborated with such celebrated conductors as Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, James Conlon, Christoph von Dohna?nyi, Charles Dutoit, Lawrence Foster, Zubin Mehta, Andre Previn, Leonard Slatkin, Edo de Waart, David Zinman and the late George Szell and Erich Leinsdorf. He has performed with the world's greatest orchestras, from the Boston and Chicago Symphony Orchestras to the Berlin Philharmonic and the London Symphony, from the NHK and New York Philharmonic to the Cleveland Orchestra. Kalichstein has also been a frequent guest pianist with the world's most beloved string quartets, including the Guarneri and Emerson Quartets, with whom he played the Shostakovich Piano Quintet in their Shostakovich Cycles in London and Washington.

Born in Tel Aviv, Kalichstein came to the United States in 1962. His principal teachers were Joshua Shor in Israel and Edward Steuermann and Ilona Kabos at The Juilliard School. Prior to winning the 1969 Leventritt Award, he had won the Young Concert Artists Auditions, and, as a result, he gave a heralded New York recital debut followed by an invitation from Leonard Bernstein to perform Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 with the New York Philharmonic in a nationally televised concert on CBS.

Kalichstein is a founding member of the famed Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio. The Trio continues to play in major music capitals as well as on all the great university concert series. Its most recent recording project is a CD devoted to works that the eminent American composer Ellen Zwilich had written for the Trio, just released on the Azica label. Bridge records has recently released their critically acclaimed 2-CD Schubert Cycle.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is unique as both an acclaimed arts institution and as a multi-disciplinary cultural campus. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence on all of its stages, offering unsurpassed experiences, and engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of live performance and a diverse array of inspiring programs.

Previously called the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Center is Orange County's largest non-profit arts organization and owns and operates the 3,000-seat Segerstrom Hall and intimate 250-seat Founders Hall, which opened in 1986, and the 2,000-seat Rene?e and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, which opened in 2006 and also houses the 500-seat Samueli Theater, the Lawrence and Kristina Dodge Education Center's studio performance space and Boeing Education Lab. A spacious arts plaza anchors Segerstrom Center for Arts and is home to numerous free performances throughout the year as part of Segerstrom Center for the Arts' ongoing Free for All series.

The Center presents a broad range of programming for audiences of all ages, including international ballet and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, intimate performances of jazz and cabaret, contemporary artists, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, family-friendly programming, free performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on the plaza and many other special events. The Center's arts-in-education programs are designed to inspire young people through the arts and reach hundreds of thousands of students each year.

In addition to the presenting and producing institution Segerstrom Center for the Arts, the 14-acre campus also embraces the facilities of two independent acclaimed organizations: Tony Award®-winning South Coast Repertory and a site designated as the future home of the Orange County Museum of Art.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is also proud to serve as the artistic home to three of the region's major performing arts organizations: Pacific Symphony, the Philharmonic Society of Orange County and the Pacific Chorale, who contribute greatly to the artistic life of the region with annual seasons at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.

Photo Credit: Irène Zandel