The performances were everything we have come to expect from this superb ensemble: technically resourceful, musically insightful, cohesive, full of character and always interesting. —The New York Times
The Emerson String Quartet stands apart in the history of string quartets with an unparalleled list of achievements over three decades that includes everything from nine Grammy Awards to the coveted Avery Fisher Prize to their 2011 induction into the Classical Music Hall of Fame.
Violinists Eugene Drucker and Philip Setzer, violist Lawrence Dutton, and cellist Paul Watkins perform a season that displays the ensemble’s range and unparalleled musicianship. Under the theme “Passing the Torch,” three of the concerts focus on the string quartet during the seminal period between 1796 and 1800—years in which the elder Haydn produced his last major set of compositions and Beethoven, his student, began his work in the genre. The dozen works that make up these programs reflect the musical transition between the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as the profound creative influence that each composer had on the other.
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SUBSCRIPTION CODE (5 concerts): BPP2
SEASON CALENDAR
Sat., Oct. 10, 2015
Passing the Torch I
Haydn: Quartet in D Minor, Op. 76 No. 2 (“Quinten”) (1796–97)
Beethoven: Quartet F Major, Op. 18 No. 1 (1798–1800)
Beethoven: Quartet in A Major, Op. 18 No. 5 (1798–1800)
Haydn: Quartet in D Major, Op. 76 No. 5 (1796–97)
Sun., Jan. 17, 2016
Solo recital with Lawrence Dutton, violist
With Elizabeth Lim-Dutton, violin and Michael Brown, piano
Matt Van Brink: The Heart Grows Fonder (2015; Washington, D.C. premiere)
Arvo Part: Fratres for Violin and Piano (1977, 1980)
Rebecca Clarke: Sonata for Viola and Piano (1919)
Johannes Brahms: Trio In E-flat Major, Opus 40 (1865)
Sat., Feb. 6, 2016
Passing the Torch II
Haydn: Quartet in C Major, Op. 76 No. 3 (“Emperor”) (1796–97)
Beethoven: Quartet in G Major, Op. 18 No. 2 (1798–1800)
Haydn: Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 76 No. 6 (1796–97)
Beethoven: Quartet in B-flat Major, Op. 18 No. 6 (1798–1800)
Sun., Apr. 3, 2016
Passing the Torch III
Haydn: Quartet in G Major, Op. 76 No. 1 (1796–97)
Beethoven: Quartet in D Major, Op. 18 No. 3 (1798–1800)
Haydn: Quartet in B-flat Major, Op. 76 No. 4 “Sunrise” (1796–97)
Beethoven: Quartet in C Minor, Op. 18 No. 4 (1798–1800)
Sun., May 22, 2016
Closing Concert
Schubert: String Quartet No. 13 in A Minor, D. 804 "Rosamunde"
Barber: Adagio for Strings (1936)
Tchaikovsky: Quartet No. 3 in E-flat Minor, Op. 30 (1875)
All programs subject to change.
