GRAMMY-nominated brass quartet The Westerlies brings its signature blend of jazz, classical, folk, and American roots influences to Fireside Brass, a festive program featuring beloved seasonal favorites. Praised for their dynamic precision and adventurous spirit, the ensemble has earned national acclaim for bringing these sounds together in unexpected ways.
From “Carol of the Bells” and “O Holy Night” to “Joy to the World” and “Jingle Bells,” Fireside Brass celebrates the season with rich harmonies and songs everyone knows by heart. Joined by the San Diego Children’s Choir on select songs, The Westerlies create a joyful evening filled with tradition and the spirit of a family sing-along.
For nearly two decades, the Sitkovetsky Trio has been recognized as one of today’s leading chamber ensembles. Bringing together Russian-British violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky, German cellist Isang Enders, and Chinese pianist Wu Qian, the ensemble has appeared at many of the world’s foremost concert halls while earning international acclaim for its award-winning recordings.
Their program pairs Haydn’s elegant Piano Trio in E-flat Major with Schumann’s deeply expressive Piano Trio No. 3 before concluding with Beethoven’s beloved “Archduke” Trio, one of the composer’s most celebrated works.
Program: Joseph Haydn: Piano Trio no. 36, in Eb Major, op. 71, no. 2, Hob. XV:22 Robert Schumann: Piano Trio no. 3, in G minor, op. 110 Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Trio, in Bb Major, op. 97 “Archduke”
Following their GRAMMY-nominated and Pulitzer Prize-finalist work Seven Pillars, quartet Sandbox Percussion reunites with composer Andy Akiho for Pentalateral. Joining the ensemble on steel pan, Akiho adds his distinctive sound to this bold new work.
Enhanced by synchronized lighting and staging, Pentalateral combines intricate rhythms, vivid textures, and the dynamic interplay of five musicians in a striking live performance.
Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Susie Ibarra joins acclaimed percussionist and UC San Diego professor Steven Schick for CHAN: Sonnets and Devotions in the Wilderness, a striking contemporary work that blends music, poetry, voice, and sound. With an ensemble of instrumentalists and vocalists, they transform the rhythms of the natural world into a richly layered live experience.
Comprising six kundimans, a traditional Filipino song form, CHAN reimagines the genre as a series of musical devotions inspired by rivers, forests, and other places that have shaped Ibarra’s life. Featuring poetry by Don Mee Choi and Logan February, the work invites audiences to listen more deeply to the connections between nature, memory, and culture.
Recognized as one of the leading chamber ensembles of its generation, the Escher String Quartet returns to our stage this season. Featuring works by Prokofiev, Shostakovich, and Britten, the program explores drama, lyricism, and emotional range through works by Prokofiev, Shostakovich, and Britten.
From passages of quiet reflection to moments of striking intensity, the ensemble illuminates the program with warmth and clarity. Their performance showcases the musical insight and rare tonal beauty for which they are internationally acclaimed.
Program: Prokofiev: String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, Op. 92 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op. 73 Britten: String Quartet No. 2 in C Major, Op. 36
The Inaudible Ocean is the latest collaboration between composer Lei Liang and oceanographer Joshua Jones at the Lei Lab, and it explores a vast spectrum of audible data, spanning signals from the infrasonic (as low as 10 Hz) to the ultrasonic (up to 320 kHz). For perspective, human music typically occupies a range of 20 to 20 kHz—less than 10% of the frequencies we study.
What renders these signals inaudible to humans? It is not only their frequency range but also their temporal scale. For instance, to perceive the richness of certain echolocation signals, we must transpose their frequencies and decelerate the playback by 10 or even 100 times. This process reveals the intricate acoustic “landscape” of the ocean, where valleys and mountains emerge through awe-inspiring echoes.
The Inaudible Ocean is our journey into the realms beyond human hearing, where technology serves as our tool and curiosity as our compass. Together, scientists and artists craft a “sonic searchlight” to illuminate the hidden wonders of the ocean for our listeners.
The world premiere of The Inaudible Ocean will be given by Lei Liang’s distinguished colleagues from the music department, Mark Dresser (contrabass), Steven Schick (percussion) and Cory Smyth (piano).
Art of Elan continues its partnership with UC San Diego’s ArtPower with a deeply personal, intimate program centered on the human voice entitled “Mayrig” (“mother” in Armenian). The show was created by Karen Ouzounian and Lembit Beecher for cello with electronics, piano and vocals. The voices of Karen’s mother and grandmother are interwoven with original arrangements of Armenian music of her family’s past home of Anatolia, songs and stories drawn from their post-genocide home of Lebanon, and the beloved music of Charles Aznavour. Opening and closing the program is Marin Marais’ Les Voix Humaines, music from hundreds of years ago providing a window into the present.
Co-presented by ArtPower at UC San Diego and Art of Elan.
Mivos performs the complete string quartets of Steve Reich featuring brand-new pre-recorded quartet parts and remastered field recordings taken from their 2023 album.
Steve Reich: WTC 9/11, Triple Quartet, Different Trains
Sponsored by Judith Bachner and Eric Lasley
Presented in partnership with Lei Lab and ArtPower at UC San Diego
The members of the acclaimed Attacca Quartet are passionate advocates of contemporary repertoire and new work—including that of composer and vocalist Caroline Shaw, who became the youngest recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2013. In a special program together, the Attacca and Shaw perform music from their 2022 album Evergreen, which, like their previous record, Orange, garnered a Grammy Award.
“A polished sonority and well-balanced, tightly synchronized ensemble with nearly faultless intonation….it is heartening to know that chamber music is in good hands with such gifted young ensembles as the Isidore Quartet”—Chicago Classical Review
Winners of a 2023 Avery Fisher Career Grant, and the 14th Banff International String Quartet Competition in 2022, the New York City-based Isidore String Quartet was formed in 2019 with a vision to revisit, rediscover, and reinvigorate the repertory. The quartet is heavily influenced by the Juilliard String Quartet and the idea of ‘approaching the established as if it were brand new, and the new as if it were firmly established.’
The quartet began as an ensemble at the Juilliard School, and has coached with Joel Krosnick, Joseph Lin, Astrid Schween, Laurie Smukler, Joseph Kalichstein, Roger Tapping, Misha Amory, and numerous others. They are currently completing their final year as Peak Fellowship Ensemble-in-Residence at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
In North America, the Isidore Quartet has appeared on major series in Boston, New York, Berkeley, Chicago, Ann Arbor, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Durham, Washington DC, Houston, Toronto, and Montreal, and has collaborated with several eminent performers including James Ehnes, Jeremy Denk, Shai Wosner, and Jon Nakamatsu. Their 24/25 season includes performances in Salt Lake City, Buffalo, Kansas City, Portland (OR), Louisville, New Orleans, Cincinnati, Memphis, Vancouver, San Francisco, and many other cities across the U.S. and Canada. In Europe they will appear at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, and in Bonn (Beethoven Haus), Stuttgart, Cologne, and Dresden, among many others.
Over the past several years, the quartet has developed a strong connection to the works of composer and pianist Billy Childs. His String Quartet No. 2, “Awakenings” was among the repertoire that delivered the Isidore their Banff victory, and this season they will play Childs’ Quartet No. 3, “Unrequited.” In the 2025-26 season, they will premiere a new Childs quartet written expressly for them.
Both on stage and outside the concert hall, the Isidore Quartet is deeply invested in connecting with youth and elderly populations, and with marginalized communities who otherwise have limited access to high-quality live music performance. They approach music as a “playground” and attempt to break down barriers to encourage collaboration and creativity. The name Isidorerecognizes the ensemble’s musical connection to the Juilliard Quartet: one of that group’s early members was legendary violinist Isidore Cohen. Additionally, it acknowledges a shared affection for a certain libation – legend has it a Greek monk named Isidore concocted the first genuine vodka recipe for the Grand Duchy of Moscow!
Program Haydn: Op. 76 No. 4 “Sunrise”
Childs, Billy: String Quartet No. 4 (2026)
Dvořák: Quartet No. 13 in G Major, Op. 106
