Calidore String Quartet Makes Carnegie Hall Debut on Today

The acclaimed Calidore String Quartet caps their artistic residency at Stony Brook University with a Carnegie Hall debut performance on Tuesday, May 10th at 8 p.m. in Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall. The concert propels the quartet into their next high-profile residency with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center II, slated to begin in the 2016 fall concert season. CSQ is the first North American ensemble to be awarded the prestigious Borletti-Buitoni fellowship. This Carnegie recital will feature string quartet works by masterful composers, including two late works by Mozart and Mendelssohn - Mozart's String Quartet in D Major, K. 575 and Mendelssohn's String Quartet in F Minor, Op. 80 - and an early yet radical chamber work by Hindemith, String Quartet No. 4, Op. 22. Tickets start at $35 and are available via CarnegieCharge at (212) 247-7800, at the box office at 57th Street and 7th Avenue or online at https://www.carnegiehall.org.

The Calidore String Quartet was hand-selected by the famed and longtime Stony Brook ensemble-in- residence, the Emerson String Quartet, to become artists-in-residence and visiting faculty at Stony Brook University beginning in September 2014. In addition to teaching and coaching students and ensembles in Stony Brook University's esteemed music department as part of its residency, CSQ worked under the tutelage of the Emersons and former member of the quartet, David Finckel. The Emerson Quartet not only served as mentors but the two quartets have shared the stage as artistic partners. While at Stony Brook, The Calidore String Quartet released their successful debut recording of works by Mendelssohn and Haydn, as well as a recording on the Editions Hortus Label of works to commemorate the centenary of World War I. The quartet's latest recent engagements include Wigmore Hall, and the Caramoor and Verbier Festivals.

"The Calidore String Quartet has served the department admirably during their residency, coaching our undergraduates, doing outreach in public schools, reading and performing student works, and performing in several concerts," says Perry Goldstein, chair of the Stony Brook Music Department. "We are delighted to present them at Carnegie Hall to exhibit their remarkable artistry and wish them well as they take their next steps in what we expect will be a long and distinguished career."

Calidore's Carnegie program explores works with divergent emotional structures. Mozart's String Quartet in D Major, K. 575, part of the Prussian Quartets dedicated to the amateur cellist King of Prussia, Friedrick Wilhelm II, highlights Mozart's indelible talent for clarity and delicacy. Hindemith's haunting and brutal String Quartet No. 4, Op. 22, one of his most popular, utilizes classical forms with Hindemith's original use of tonality. The concert concludes with Mendelssohn's String Quartet in F minor, Op. 80, which explores the depths of Mendelssohn's pain and anguish following the death of his sister, Fanny Mendelssohn.

Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at 8 PM
Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall
57th St. & 7th Ave., New York, NY
212-247-7800 https://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2016/5/10/0800/PM/Calidore-String-Quartet/ Admission: $35-$40

Subways: N/Q/R to 57th St.; A/B/C/D/1 to 59th St. Columbus Circle

Described as "the epitome of confidence and finesse," (Gramophone Magazine) and "a miracle of unified thought," (La Presse, Montreal), the Calidore String Quartet has established an international reputation for its informed, polished, and passionate performances. Currently, the quartet is artist-in-residence at Stony Brook University (SUNY) and has been appointed to the prestigious roster of the

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Two for the 2016-2019 seasons. In recognition of its international acclaim the quartet won the 2016 Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship, becoming the first North American ensemble to win the prestigious career grant. The Calidore String Quartet regularly performs throughout North America, Europe, and Asia and has debuted in such prestigious venues as Wigmore Hall, Lincoln Center, Seoul's Kumho Arts Hall, Schneider Concerts (NYC), and at many significant festivals, including Verbier, Ravinia, Mostly Mozart, Rheingau, East Neuk, and Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

The Calidore String Quartet won grand prizes in virtually all the major U.S. chamber music competitions, including the Fischoff, Coleman, Chesapeake, and Yellow Springs competitions. It captured top prizes at the 2012 ARD Munich International String Quartet Competition and Hamburg International Chamber Music Competition, as well.

Highlights of the quartet's 2015-16 season include its debut at Carnegie Hall, Ladies' Morning Music Club (Montreal), New York City Town Hall, performances of the complete Mendelssohn quartet cycle at the East Neuk Festival (UK), and performances of the Mendelssohn Octet with the Emerson Quartet at Princeton and Stony Brook Universities. During the 2015-16 season, the Calidore collaborates with many esteemed musicians, including the Emerson Quartet, Inon Barnatan, Paul Watkins, Daniel Phillips, Matthew Lipman, and Lawrence Dutton.

Summer 2015 was filled with important debuts including Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (DEU), East Neuk Festival (UK), Ottawa Chamber Music Festival (ON), Music Mountain (CT), and the Mostly Mozart Festival (NY). The Calidore String Quartet returned as quartet-in-residence at the Bellingham Festival of Music (WA) and the Innsbrook Institute Summer Music Academy and Festival (MO), as well as returned to perform at the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival (MI).

In February 2015, the Calidore String Quartet released its critically-acclaimed debut recording of quartets by Mendelssohn and Haydn. Additionally, in February 2016 the Calidore released an album on the French label Editions Hortus, with music by Hindemith, Milhaud, Stravinsky, de la Presle, and Toch commemorating the World War I Centennial. The Calidore were featured as Young Artists-in-Residence on American Public Media's Performance Today and their performances have been broadcast on National Public Radio, BBC, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Korean Broadcasting Corporation, Bayerischer Rundfunk (Munich), Norddeutscher Rundfunk (Hamburg), and were featured on German national television as part of a documentary produced by ARD public broadcasting.

As advocates of contemporary music, the Calidore String Quartet performed Pulitzer-prize-winning composer Caroline Shaw's "Entr'acte" in concerts throughout the 2014-15 season in New York, Washington D.C., and Los Angeles. In summer 2015, the Calidore premiered Patrick Harlin's "Birdsongs for the City Dweller," commissioned by the Caramoor Center, as well as "Prometheus" by Mark Grey, commissioned by the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival.

The Calidore String Quartet has collaborated with many esteemed artists and ensembles, including Jean- Yves Thibaudet, Joshua Bell, Paul Coletti, Ronald Leonard, Raphael Merlin, and Quatuor Ebe?ne, among others. Formed in 2010 at the Colburn School of Music, the Calidore has studied closely with such luminaries as the Emerson Quartet, David Finckel, Andre Roy, Arnold Steinhardt, Gu?nther Pichler, Gerhard Schulz, Heime Mu?ller, Guillaume Sutre, Gabor Takacs-Nagy, Paul Coletti, Ronald Leonard, and the Quatuor Ebe?ne.

As a passionate supporter of music education, the Calidore String Quartet is deeply committed to mentoring and educating young musicians, students, and audiences. In 2016, the Calidore was awarded the John Ladd prize by the Saint Lawrence String Quartet in recognition of their artistic excellence and dedication to expanding audiences for chamber music. In addition, they have conducted two multi-week outreach residencies of over twenty performances sponsored by Stanford University. The Calidore String Quartet has conducted master classes and residencies at Princeton, Stanford, University of Michigan, UCLA, and Mercer University, as well as at Chamber Music Connection in Columbus, Ohio. The Calidore was previously on the faculty of the Ed and Mari Edelman Chamber Music Institute at the Colburn School.

Using an amalgamation of "California" and "dore?" (French for "golden"), the ensemble's name represents a reverence for the diversity of culture and the strong support it received from its home of origin, Los Angeles, California, the "golden state." The Calidore String Quartet aims to present performances that share the passion and joy of the string quartet chamber music repertoire.

For more information about the Calidore String Quartet, please visit www.calidorestringquartet.com and www.facebook.com/calidorequartet.

Members: Jeffrey Myers, violin; Ryan Meehan, violin; Jeremy Berry, viola; Estelle Choi, cello

Photo Credit: Jeffrey Fasano