Anthony Braxton

The legendary avant garde modern jazz composer and multi-instrumentalist Anthony Braxton makes a rare visit to San Diego via a solo performance at UC San Diego. Recognized as one of the most important musicians, educators, and creative thinkers of the past 50 years, Anthony Braxton has been widely celebrated for his revolutionary work, drawing from sources as disparate as John Coltrane, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and 12th-century mystic Hildegard von Bingen.

 

An Evening with the St. Lawrence

Hailed by the New Yorker “not simply for the quality of their music making, exalted as it is, but for the joy they take in the act of connection,” the acclaimed St. Lawrence continues its fabled partnership with Stanford, remaining a cultural cornerstone of the University, directing the music department’s Chamber Music Program, concertizing at Stanford Live, hosting a popular summer seminar, and running the Emerging String Quartet Program.”

Program

Mozart: Quartet for Oboe (arranged for saxophone) and strings in F Major, K 370
Britten: Phantasy Quartet for Oboe (arranged for saxophone) and Strings, Op. 2
Steven Banks: Cries, Sighs and Dreams for alto sax and string quartet (2021)
An additional work TBD.

 

Boarte Piano Trio

The Boarte Piano Trio was enthusiastically created by three of the most dedicated and outstanding Polish musicians of our time. The promisingly gifted pianist Konrad Skolarski, the breathtaking virtuoso Jarosław Nadrzycki , and the sensational cellist Karol Marianowski are all acclaimed artists in their country and abroad. They are laureates of many international music competitions, each with a long history of performances all over Europe, North and South America, as well as Asia.

The members of the Trio have won many prestigious international competitions, and have also received numerous awards for their previous recordings, including the Supersonic Award of the German magazine Pizzicato, five Diapasons d’Or  of the French Magazine *Diapason and several nominations for the Fryderyk award. The three Boarte Trio musicians have also performed with leading orchestras such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the MDR Sinfonieorchester, and the Simón Bolivar Orchestra of Venezuela.

All three artists are Graduate Students of the Hochschule für Musik Köln, the Boston Conservatory, the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, and the I. J. Paderewski Academy of Music  in Poznań, where they currently conduct pedagogical activities.

PROGRAM
Beethoven: Piano Trio in C minor, op. 1 no. 3
Pärt: Fratres (arr. for piano trio)
Felix Mendelssohn: Piano Trio in C minor, op. 66 no. 2

Isidore String Quartet

Winners of a 2023 Avery Fisher Career Grant, and the 14th Banff International String Quartet Competition in 2022, the New York City-based IsidoreString 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.’

Outside the concert hall the quartet has worked with PROJECT: MUSIC HEALS US providing encouragement, education, and healing to marginalized communities-including elderly, disabled, rehabilitating incarcerated and homeless populations-who otherwise have limited access to high-quality live music performance.

The name Isidore recognizes the ensemble’s musical connection tothe 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
Mozart: Quartet in C Major, KV 465 “Dissonance”
Billy Childs: String Quartet no. 2 “Awakening”
Felix Mendelssohn: String Quartet in E-flat Major, op. 44 no. 3

Australian Haydn Ensemble

“A jewel in the national period-instrument crown.” —Limelight

The Australian Haydn Ensemble (AHE), under the direction of Artistic Director Skye McIntosh, is one of Australia’s leading historically informed orchestras and chamber music groups. AHE brings together world-class musicians who excel in both modern and period instrument performance and are highly committed to both historical research and performance. The group’s repertoire is principally music of the late Baroque and early Classical era, and has built a reputation for its vibrant and accessible performances, which are faithful to the sound-worlds that would have been familiar to Haydn and his contemporaries.

AHE makes its premiere U.S. tour in October 2023 with a coast to coast tour including a North American debut at ArtPower at UC San Diego and a New York debut at Carnegie Hall.

PROGRAM
Johann Christian Bach (1735-1782): Symphony in G minor, op. 6 no. 6
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809: Symphony No.6 in D major (Le Matin)
Franz Joseph Haydn: No. 8 in G (Le Soir)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791): Symphony No. 29 in A major, K. 201

Tesla Quartet with pianist David Kaplan

The Kreutzer Affair is an immersive theatrical concert program created by the Tesla Quartet with pianist David Kaplan, exploring how music was captured into words and then rebottled into music again.

The Tesla Quartet is known the world over for their “superb capacity to find the inner heart of everything they play, regardless of era, style, or technical demand” (International Review of Music). From cutting edge contemporary works to established masterpieces, the Tesla Quartet’s emotive and thoughtful interpretations reveal the ensemble’s deep commitment to the craft and to their ever expanding repertoire. The quartet recognizes the power of their platform to amplify underrepresented voices and to encourage the proliferation of an equitable and just future for society as well as a hospitable climate for posterity. The Tesla Quartet is Ross Snyder (violin), Michelle Lie (violin), Edwin Kaplan (viola), and Austin Fisher (cello).

David Kaplan, pianist, has been called “excellent and adventurous” by the New York Times, and praised by the Boston Globe for “grace and fire” at the keyboard. Kaplan has consistently drawn critical acclaim for creative programs that interweave classical and contemporary repertoire, often incorporating newly commissioned works.

PROGRAM:
Beethoven: Sonata for Piano and Violin in A Major, op. 47 “Kreutzer”
Janáček: String Quartet no. 1 “The Kreutzer Sonata”
Amy Beach: Piano Quintet in F sharp minor, op. 67

Castalian String Quartet

In the decade since its formation, the London-based Castalian Quartet has distinguished itself as one of the most dynamic, sophisticated young string quartets performing today.  Hailed for their “powerful individuality of sound” and “instinctive singularity of musical intention” (The Scotsman) whose performances are “full of poetry, joy and sorrow” and “realized to such perfection” (The Observer), the London-based quartet takes immense pleasure in performing for diverse audiences everywhere, from great concert halls to maximum security prisons and even a rainforest.

Program: Mozart Quartet in D minor;
Britten: String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 25;
Schubert: String Quartet in D minor

Takae Ohnishi: Spring Night with Vivaldi and Bach

Travel back in time with harpsichordist and UC San Diego lecturer Takae Ohnishi as she teams up with friends from the San Diego Symphony to revel in the joys of a springtime evening in the Baroque era. It is certain to be a lighthearted evening filled with virtuosic performances of some of the great works written for the harpsichord. 

Featuring: Zou Yu and Nihira Awata, violins; Lily Josefsberg, flute, Chia-Ling Chien, cello, PJ Cinque, double bass

Program:
Duphly: Chaconne; Rameau: Clavecin Concert No.5; J.S.Bach: Sonata for harpsichord and cello No.3  BWV1029 and Brandenburg Concerto No.5 BWV1050; Vivaldi: Trio Sonata “La Follia” RV63

 

Esmé Quartet

Based in Germany, the award-winning Esmé Quartet was formed by four Korean musicians who had been friends since childhood and has since gained a worldwide reputation as a chamber ensemble of exceptional artistry and achievement. Praised for their warm sound and powerful stage presence, the quartet brings together the performers’ brilliant and distinct musical personalities to form a cohesive, close-knit group that is passionately dedicated to the string quartet repertoire.

Program: Borodin: String Quartet No. 2;
Fanny Mendelssohn: String Quartet;
Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1

Hermitage Piano Trio

Now entering their second decade, the United States-based Hermitage Piano Trio has solidified its place as one of the world’s leading piano trios, garnering multiple GRAMMY Award nominations and receiving both audience and press accolades for their performances that the Washington Post singled out for “such power and sweeping passion that it left you nearly out of breath.”  Hallmarks of the Hermitage Piano Trio is their impeccable musicianship, sumptuous sound, and polished skill, which have led to demand for many repeat performances.

Program: Amy Beach​: Piano Trio, in A minor, Op. 150; Georgy Sviridov: ​​Trio in A minor, Op. 6;  Sergei Rachmaninoff: Trio No. 1 in G minor “Elégiaque”​​ & Vocalise​, Op. 34​​; Gaspar Cassadó: ​​Trio in C Major