Takacs Quartet to Perform the Complete Bartók String Quartets at Carnegie Hall, 1/18-19

On Saturday, January 18 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, January 19 at 3:00 p.m., in Zankel Hall, the critically acclaimed Takács Quartet performs a complete Bartók string quartet cycle-a musical touchstone of the 20th century, composed over a span of three decades. On January 18, Takács Quartet presents quartets numbers 1, 3, and 5, followed by numbers 2, 4, and 6 on January 19, showcasing the development of the prolific composer's compositional style throughout the years. The quartet's iconic recording of these works on the Decca label received a Gramophone Award in 1998 for Best Chamber Music, and was also nominated for a Grammy Award in 1999. Takács Quartet has performed the cycle throughout the world, including London's Wigmore Hall, where the ensemble was recently appointed Associate Artists.

The concert on January 18 will be aired on WQXR 105.9 FM in New York and on stations nationwide as part of the Carnegie Hall Live broadcast and digital series. Produced by WQXR, New York City's classical music station, and Carnegie Hall, and presented in partnership with American Public Media, the series is hosted by WQXR's Jeff Spurgeon and APM's Fred Child, and is available for live streaming on wqxr.org and carnegiehall.org/wqxr. Select concerts will be archived for on-demand streaming post-broadcast. During each broadcast, WQXR and Carnegie Hall will host live chats featuring behind-the-scenes insights by the broadcast team, color commentary by the hosts, and interaction with the broadcast / webcast listeners, connecting national and international fans to the music and to each other.

Opened in September 2003, Zankel Hall-Carnegie Hall's modern, underground performance space-celebrates its tenth anniversary this season with concerts that reflect the wide variety of music for which the venue has become known, including appearances by up-and-coming and established artists in the classical, jazz, world music, and pop genres.

About the Artists:

Formed in 1975 at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest, Takács Quartet plays with a unique blend of drama, warmth, and humor, bringing fresh insights to the string quartet repertoire. Based in Boulder at the University of Colorado, the Grammy Award-winning ensemble performs ninety concerts a year worldwide. Aside from being the first string quartet inducted into the Gramophone Hall of Fame, the ensemble also won the 2011 Award for Chamber Music and Song presented by the Royal Philharmonic Society in London. During the 2013-2014 season, the quartet tours Japan and Singapore, and performs the complete Bartók cycle throughout the US at the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, IL; Princeton; Washington, D.C.; Stanford; University of California Berkeley; Boston; and Cleveland.

The quartet's award-winning recordings include a complete Beethoven string quartet cycle on the Decca label, the late Beethoven quartets, and middle Beethoven quartets, which have collectively won Grammy Awards, Gramophone Awards, Japanese Record Academy Awards, and Disc of the Year and Chamber Awards from BBC Music Magazine. The ensemble has made several recordings for Hyperion, including a Grammy Award nominated 2007 album, featuring Stephen Hough performing Brahms' Piano Quintet and the recently released Britten: String Quartets Nos. 1, 2, and 3.

Since 1988, the quartet has made sixteen recordings for the Decca label, featuring works by Beethoven, Bartók, Borodin, Brahms, Chausson, Dvo?ák, Haydn, Mozart, Schubert, and Smetana. They have recorded with renowned artists, such as pianists Andreas Haefliger, András Schiff, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, violinist Joshua Bell, violist Gyorgy Pauk, among others. The Takács Quartet holds summer residencies at the Aspen Festival, and Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara.

The group received international attention after winning First Prize and the Critics' Prize at the International String Quartet Competition in Evian, France in 1977. Takács Quartet also won the Gold Medal at the 1978 Portsmouth and Bordeaux Competitions and First Prizes at the Budapest International String Quartet Competition in 1978, and the Bratislava Competition in 1981, before taking its North American debut tour in 1982. In 2001, the quartet was awarded the Order of Merit of the Knight's Cross of the Republic of Hungary, and in March of 2011, each member was awarded the Order of Merit Commander's Cross by the President of the Republic of Hungary.

Program Information:

Saturday, January 18, 2014 at 7:30 p.m.
Zankel Hall
TAKÁCS QUARTET
•• Edward Dusinberre, Violin
•• Károly Schranz, Violin
•• Geraldine Walther, Viola
•• András Fejér, Cello

ALL-BARTÓK PROGRAM

String Quartet No. 1
String Quartet No. 3
String Quartet No. 5

Sunday, January 19, 2014 at 3:00 p.m.
Zankel Hall
TAKÁCS QUARTET
•• Edward Dusinberre, Violin
•• Károly Schranz, Violin
•• Geraldine Walther, Viola
•• András Fejér, Cello

ALL-BARTÓK PROGRAM

String Quartet No. 2
String Quartet No. 4
String Quartet No. 6

Tickets, priced at $52 and $62, are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street, or can be charged to major credit cards by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800 or by visiting the Carnegie Hall website, carnegiehall.org.

For more information on this and other discount ticket programs, including those for students, Notables members, and Bank of America customers, visit carnegiehall.org/discounts. Artists, programs, and prices are subject to change.

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