THE IVES QUARTET Presents Dvorak, Piano Quintet in A Major, Op. 81 PAUL HERSH, pianist
Quincy Porter, Quartet No. 3
Beethoven, Quartet C minor, Op. 18, #4
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Please contact: March 26, 2007
Pam Lampkin, Administrative Director
(650) 224-7849 pkinx2@aol.com
Palo Alto, CA – Inspired by the passionate, artistic commitment of American composer Charles Ives (1874-1954), the Ives Quartet provides powerful musical experiences by presenting fresh and informed interpretations of a carefully curated repertory to San Francisco Bay Area, American and international audiences.
The Ives Quartet, Spring Concert Series features pianist Paul Hersh, who joins the Ives in the Dvorak Piano Quintet, Op. 81.Over the years, the Ives has treasured its collaborations with Mr. Hersh, both as a violist and as a pianist. He has made a particular impression on Peninsula audiences and students through his many years of performances and mentoring with the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra.
Mr. Hersh attended Yale and studied viola with William Primrose and piano with Leonard Shure and Edward Steuermann. From 1961-1971, he was violist and pianist of the Lenox Quartet. He made his piano debut at Carnegie Recital Hall in 1964. He is currently Professor of Piano, Viola, Chamber Music and Literature at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
In keeping with their commitment to a vibrant, living repertoire, the Ives’ Spring Concert Series will introduce Quincy Porter’s Third String Quartet, which, along with Quartets 1, 2, and 4, is scheduled for release on the Naxos Classical Music label in July 2007. This marks the first time the Porter quartets have been recorded.
Jodi Levitz, violist, joined the Quartet in September 2006 and first played with the Ives in this soon to be released recording. In fact, it was Jodi who went to the Yale University music library to find the scores and parts to the first and second quartets, now out of print. The work was first recommended to second violinist Susan Freier and her former quartet, the Chester, by the great violinist/teacher Joseph Gingold. Like the quartet’s namesake, Charles Ives, Porter was a Connecticut native. Porter taught at Ives’ alma mater, Yale University, a generation after Ives graduated. If much of Ives’ music reflects everyday life in the rural New England of his day, Porter’s Third Quartet is inspired by the jazz and American urban bustle of the 1930s.
Porter was a very accomplished violist and enjoyed his quartet work immensely. This must account for the works that span his entire creative life – nine quartets, a pair of quintets and numerous other chamber works. The Third Quartet has a particularly luscious viola part; it is a great way to continue to introduce Ives Quartet violist, Jodi Levitz, to our audience!
Rhythmic dance qualities are the unifying element of the Ives’ spring series program. The last movement of the Porter is a fandango, the Dvorak’s Czech rhythms, particularly in it’s Dumka and Scherzo movements, and the Hungarian style of the last movement of the Beethoven give all of the pieces immediately irresistible and visceral rhythmic drive.
The Ives Quartet combines the talent and experience of the international, solo, orchestral, chamber, and recording careers of its artist members –Bettina Mussumeli, violin; Susan Freier, violin; Jodi Levitz, viola; andStephen Harrison, cello. Each player is an acclaimed performer on his/her instrument, earning distinction with other renowned chamber music ensembles, including the Chester and Stanford Quartets, I Solisti Veneti, the Chicago String Trio, and the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players. The unique perspective of the Quartet, reflecting the unusual and varied backgrounds of the its members, graces San Francisco Bay Area stages during its home season and the concert halls and festival stages of Europe during the summer.
Spring Concert Series Information
Friday, May 11, 2007, 8pm
St. Mark’s Episcopal Church,
600 Colorado Avenue, Palo Alto
Saturday, May 12, 2007, 8pm
Le Petit Trianon Theatre,
72 North 5th Street, San Jose
TICKETS: $25 (general), $20 (seniors) $15 (students) at the door.
Children 12 and under FREE.
Online information (http://ivescollective.org), or 224-7849
COLOR & B/W JPG ART AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST