Takacs Quartet to Perform at Rice University's Stude Hall, 10/24

A world-class ensemble of Hungarian origin, the GRAMMY Award-winning Takács Quartet will perform in Houston for one night only, Thursday, Oct. 24 at 8 p.m. in Stude Hall at Rice University, presented by Society for the Performing Arts.

The program for the evening will include W.A. Mozart's String Quartet No. 17 in B-flat Major, K. 458; Leoš Jána?ek's String Quartet No. 2, "Intimate Letters"; and Antonin Dvo?ák's String Quintet Op. 77 in G Major. Joining the Quartet on stage for the last piece will be double bassist Timothy Pitts, Rice University professor and former principal bass for the Houston Symphony.

Recognized as one of the world's great ensembles, the Takács Quartet plays with a unique blend of drama, warmth and humor, combining four distinct musical personalities to bring fresh insights to the string quartet repertoire. Formed in Budapest in 1975 and now residents of the United States, the Takács is celebrated for insightful and exciting programming and lush, passionate interpretations.

In 2012, Gramophone announced that the Takács was the only string quartet to be inducted into its first Hall of Fame, along with such legendary artists as Jascha Heifetz, Leonard Bernstein and Dame Janet Baker. The ensemble won the 2011 Award for Chamber Music and Song presented by the Royal Philharmonic Society in London.

The Quartet's award-winning recordings include the complete Beethoven Cycle on the Decca label. Their recordings of the early and middle Beethoven quartets collected a Grammy, a Gramophone Award, a Chamber Music of America Award and two awards from the Japanese Recording Academy. A disc featuring Brahms' Piano Quintet with Stephen Hough was released to great acclaim in November 2007 and was subsequently nominated for a Grammy.

The Quartet has also made 16 recordings for the Decca label since 1988 of works by Beethoven, Bartók, Borodin, Brahms, Chausson, Dvo?ák, Haydn, Mozart, Schubert and Smetana. The ensemble's recording of the six Bartók String Quartets received the 1998Gramophone Award for chamber music and, in 1999, was nominated for a Grammy.

The quartet is known for innovative programming. In 2007 it performed "Everyman," inspired by the Philip Roth novel with Academy Award-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman in Carnegie Hall. The group collaborates regularly with the Hungarian folk ensemble Muzsikas, performing a program that explores the folk sources of Bartók's music. The Takács performed a music and poetry program on a 14-city U.S. tour with the poet Robert Pinsky.

The Takács Quartet was formed in 1975 at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest by Gabor Takács-Nagy, Károly Schranz, Gabor Ormai and András Fejér, while all four were students. It first received international attention in 1977, winning First Prize and the Critics' Prize at the International String Quartet Competition in Evian, France. The Quartet made its North American debut tour in 1982. Violinist Edward Dusinberre joined the Quartet in 1993 and violist Roger Tapping in 1995. Violist Geraldine Walther replaced Mr. Tapping in 2005.

The members of the Takács Quartet are Christoffersen Faculty Fellows at the University of Colorado Boulder. The Quartet has helped to develop a string program with a special emphasis on chamber music, where students work in a nurturing environment designed to help them develop their artistry.

Part of SPA's Occidental Petroleum Music Series, this is generously sponsored by Reliant, United, H-E-B and BMC Software.

Tickets range from $23-$73 and can be purchased online at www.spahouston.org, by phone at 713-227-4SPA or at the courtyard level ticket office at Jones Hall located at 615 Louisiana St. Hours of operation: 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. Monday - Friday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday. For groups of 15 or more call 713-632-8113.

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