PROGRAM I – AMERICAN DREAM

VERSION A – FULLY ANNOUNCED PROGRAM

Lera Auerbach: Quartet No. 10, “Frozen Dreams”
Béla Bartók: Quartet No. 5, Sz. 102
*****
Antonín Dvořák: Quartet in F major, Op. 96 “American”

VERSION B – PARTIALLY ANNOUNCED PROGRAM

Unannounced: Works and/or movements by Walker, Porat, Cage, Marsalis, Price, and others
*****
Béla Bartók: Quartet No. 5, Sz. 102
OR
Antonín Dvořák: Quartet in F major, Op. 96 “American”

2023 marks 25 years of living, breathing and performing together in the organism that is the Ariel String Quartet - a milestone which happens to coincide meaningfully with the receipt of our long-awaited Permanent Residency status in the United States. Every immigration story is one of two cultures meeting, the old and the new, the known and the unknown... familiar roots taking on new meaning in an unfamiliar environment.

American Dream explores this experience musically by featuring a variety of artists from all over the world, channeling their expressivity into an intuitive and powerful narrative with a decidedly theatrical feel. Works by past and present composers who have chosen to make their home in the United States converse freely with one another in a purposefully unannounced concert half. A few carefully chosen, inspiring words provide abstract and thought-provoking context, and for keen audience members the entire program may be viewed at intermission.

This rather unfamiliar form of presentation introduces a concert experience filled with a renewed sense of open mindedness and discovery, while simultaneously redefining the communicative potential of the traditional chamber music experience and serving as a musical metaphor for the way we aspire to see others and want to be seen ourselves: free of expectations, unprejudiced and with a truly open mind and heart.

– Video example available upon request

PROGRAM II – VOCES INTIMAE

Leoš Janáček: Quartet No. 2, “Intimate Letters”
Louis Andriessen: Garden of Eros
*****
Robert Schumann: Quartet in A major, Op. 41, No. 3

Voces Intimae zooms in on the fact that the string quartet genre served as the medium of choice for many composers when the need to convey their most sincere and deeply reflective thoughts emerged. Highlighting this proposition in three distinctly different ways, we named the program Voces Intimae as the interplay between the voices creates a sense of intimate dialogue. ‘When I listen to a string quartet, it makes me feel as if I am eavesdropping on a conversation between four intelligent people.’, German poet and mastermind Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is famously quoted to have said.

Leoš Janáček, aged 63, fell in love with Kamila Stösslová - a young woman nearly four decades his junior. Even though Stösslová doesn’t seem to have shared the composer’s feelings, Janaček's involvement was fueled with intense passion. Throughout the ensuing eleven years, until the composer's death, the pair exchanged a staggering amount in excess of seven hundred letters. The extraordinary affection for Stösslová inspired Janaček to compose his second string quartet, entitled ‘Intimate Letters’ in reference to the correspondence. The music is charged with passionate energy and holds several incredibly tender and profoundly touching moments: ‘You stand behind every note, you, living, forceful, loving’, as Janaček confessed to Stösslová while conceiving the work.

Inspired by a 1934 love poem by Dutch writer Jan Egelman, Louis Andriessen's ‘Garden of Eros’ is an absolutely unique piece for string quartet: Andriessen himself described the writing as ‘a piece for solo violin, accompanied by three string instruments.’ Despite the conceptualization of a featured leading voice with accompaniment - in some ways a nod back to the early days of the string quartet genre - the voices of the quartet are not estranged from one another, but rather complement each other; the result is a harmonious, often magical texture of layered sounds. The solo voice of the first violin soaring high above its companions appears to share an immensely personal story, and the independence - or loneliness - of this voice creates a unique sense of intimacy and tenderness in this work. The piece is written in memory of Andriessen's brother, composer Jurriaan Andriessen.

Robert Schumann's quartet Op. 41, No. 3, is one of the beloved works of string quartet literature and we have included it in this program due to its prominently featured ‘Leitmotiv’ of a falling fifth, famously dubbed ‘Clara Motif.’ Schumann regarded the string quartet genre as the ‘Königsdisziplin,’ the discipline of kings, and carefully studied the works of his predecessors Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven, waiting until the summer of 1842 to compose his three additions to the genre. The entire first movement is based on the ‘Clara Motif’, and despite complaints of gloomy moods and ill health, the Quartet in A major turned out to be one of his most inspired and spirited works.

In their own way, then, each of these three quartets strives to express something deeply personal through the medium of the string quartet, and this program unites these works to a colorful kaleidoscope of intimate voices.

PROGRAM III – FRENCH CONNECTION

VERSION A – NO INTERMISSION

Gabriel Fauré: Quartet in E minor, Op. 121
Maurice Ravel: Quartet in F major

VERSION B – CONCERT-LENGTH VERSION

Gabriel Fauré: Quartet in E minor, Op.121
Henri Dutilleux: ‘Ainsi la nuit’
*****
Maurice Ravel: Quartet in F major

Maurice Ravel's only work for string quartet undisputedly belongs to the most celebrated works in all of classical music. Unfortunately, however, the French master was not to enjoy today’s unequivocally overwhelming approval rate during his lifetime, with the quartet in F major paradoxically receiving the cold shoulder from the one person whose approval Ravel was seeking above all: that of his mentor, Gabriel Fauré, the dedicatee of the work.

Interestingly, Fauré in turn proved very hesitant himself in approaching the string quartet genre, which may or may not have played a part in his surprising reaction to Ravel's work. Nevertheless, towards the end of his life he put to paper what should remain his one and only contribution to the string quartet canon: an absolutely gorgeous, marvelous and ironically rarely performed work.

Adding further variety to this program is Henry Dutilleux’s ‘Ainsi la nuit’, one of the most famous and versatile works for string quartet in the second half of the 20th century. Inspired to a significant degree by Anton Webern’s ‘Six bagatelles’ the work is based on a series of studies entitled ‘Nights’, each of which focuses on a different aspect of sound production.

French Connection offers a refreshed view of the French classical music tradition through the string quartet lens by highlighting these three remarkably beautiful and original works: one forward looking, one retrospect and one contemporary, making for both an inimitable musical and historical pairing.

PROGRAM I (ALL SEASON) - ANCESTRAL VOICES

Matan Porat: Four Ladino Songs (commissioned by ASQ)
Arr. ASQ: Songs & Poetry from our Heritage
*****
Franz Schubert: String Quartet No. 14 in D minor, D. 810 “Death and the Maiden”

Ancestral Voices opens with Matan Porat’s Four Ladino Songs, a tremendously compelling piece commissioned in 2018 on the occasion of our 20th anniversary. The unique work powerfully integrates authentic Ladino music, features a one-of-a-kind twist at its culmination and instantly was and remained an absolute audience favorite.

Presenting a partially unannounced program has quickly evolved into a ground-breaking form of unfiltered and evocative communication for us, making it the platform of choice to meaningfully incorporate a diverse selection of our favorite vocal music from the countries of our ancestors into this program (Israel, Germany, Poland, Latvia, Ukraine and Russia, to name a few). The transcriptions are our own and reflect a colorful, emotionally varied and accessible mixture of flavors ranging from simple folk tunes to rarely performed works by lesser-known composers.

We conclude this journey with Franz Schubert’s String Quartet in D minor, D. 810, famously nicknamed ‘Death and the Maiden’, as its variation movement borrows the well-known theme from the song of the same title. In addition to its undisputed status as one of the pillars of the chamber music repertoire it also holds a tremendous degree of personal significance for us: having performed and lived with it for almost all of our 25 years together, it is closely related to our first major professional success in winning the ‘Franz Schubert and Modern Music’ Competition in Graz as teenagers – an outcome so unexpected we showed up to the award ceremony dressed in sweatpants... but that is a story for a post-concert meal!

PROGRAM II - REQUIEM

Felix Mendelssohn: String Quartet in F minor, Op. 80
Lera Auerbach: String Quartet No. 3 “Cetera Desunt”
*****
Benjamin Britten: String Quartet No. 2 in C Major, Op. 36

As artists we have a need and an obligation to reflect on and process collective and subjective experiences in our craft. As humanity emerged from social isolation slowly finding its way back into the concert hall the world entered yet another round of devastating wars, and our thoughts and feelings naturally turned to repertoire reflecting this need.

Felix Mendelssohn’s Quartet Op. 80 was written shortly after his sister Fanny tragically passed away due to complications from a stroke. Mendelssohn himself died shortly thereafter from the same cause, making this quartet his final completed work.

In the spirit of Lera Auerbach’s reluctance to explain her own music we will shy away from any literal interpretations and let the music speak for itself. Suffice it to say that the title of the piece - “Cetera Desunt” (‘The Rest is Absent’) - and, more importantly, its musical message feels right at home in this program centered around mourning and loss.

In July of 1945 Benjamin Britten traveled to Germany together with violinist Yehudi Menuhin, and during a period of ten days the pair played fourteen recitals for concentration camp survivors. It is impossible to put into words what this experience must have left them with, but music has the power to convey what words cannot. Britten’s String Quartet No. 2, Op. 36 in C major, written in the wake of this ‘concert tour’, leaves us completely depleted and yet deeply touched, changed, with a prevailing

sense of having witnessed experiences no human should have to endure, and yet so many have.

Filled to the brim with contrast and expressivity, the works displayed in ‘Requiem’ trace three dramatically different composers’ responses to loss, be it personal or collective, explicit or implicit, and the resulting experience is a riveting and emotionally stirring Aristotelian Catharsis.

PROGRAM III - SCHNITTKE DECONSTRUCTED

Orlando di Lasso, arr. ASQ: excerpt from Stabat Mater
Alfred Schnittke: String Quartet No. 3 (1983)
Orlando di Lasso, arr. ASQ: excerpt from Stabat Mater
Dmitri Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Op. 110
*****
Orlando di Lasso, arr. ASQ: excerpt from Stabat Mater
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet B-flat major, Op. 133

Ferran Adrià, chef and owner of ‘elBulli’, undoubtedly the most controversial and experimental restaurant in the world, famously invented the concept of ‘deconstructed food’ in the late 80s/early 90s, and in this program we are applying the revolutionary concept to music. In modern cuisine, a typically well-known dish is presented in a ‘deconstructed’ fashion with the goal to create a meal that is physically different from the original but retains all of its flavors. More than a technique, it is the art to simply change the form and keep the basic nature of the dish with the goal of stimulating the senses.

Seth Brodsky describes Alfred Schnittke’s third string quartet as ‘one of those remarkable works that perfectly synthesizes form and content, ends and means, and in doing so rightfully earns the mantle "classic." Despite its relatively recent conception in 1983, it has already become one of the most popular works in the post-1945 repertory which makes it an ideal choice for “musical deconstruction.” Based on broadly diversified influences such as Orlando di Lasso, Ludwig van Beethoven and Dmitri Shostakovich, Schnittke utilized older, more recognizable musical models lending the work enormous concentration.

Fascinating literature analyzes this work in great detail, but the purpose of Schnittke Deconstructed is to award the listener an opportunity to unlock their own deeper intuitive access to the work by displaying the ‘ingredients’ side by side with the piece itself. Shostakovich’s string quartet No. 8 in C minor, Op. 110, and Beethoven's eternal ‘Große Fuge’ Op. 133 are pillars on the program, with transcribed excerpts of Orlando di Lasso’s incredible 16th century Stabat Mater providing a red thread throughout the narrative.

PROGRAM I – WUNDERKIND
Franz Schubert: String Quartet No. 8 in B-flat major, Op. 168, D. 112
Benjamin Britten: Quartettino
*****
Felix Mendelssohn: String Quartet in A minor, Op. 13

Wunderkind explores the remarkable artistry achieved at a young age by three giants of the music world, featuring breathtaking works composed by Franz Schubert, Benjamin Britten, and Felix Mendelssohn, all written during their teenage years.

PROGRAM II – VIENNESE SCHOOL MIXTAPE
Joseph Haydn: String Quartet in E-flat major, Op. 33, No. 2, “The Joke”
Alban Berg: String Quartet, Op. 3
*****
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet in B-flat major, Op. 130 (with Op. 133 Grosse Fuge ending)

PROGRAM III – PRAYER
Lera Auerbach: Primera Luz
Matan Porat: Four Ladino Songs*
commissioned by the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music for the Ariel Quartet
*****
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet in A minor, Op. 132

*Alternatively available is a collaboration with Clarinetist David Krakauer for Osvaldo Golijov’s The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind  

PROJECTS
PROJECT I - AMERICAN DREAM
Unannounced Half: Music and spoken word
*****
Antonín Dvořák: Quartet in F major, Op. 96, “American”

This program is designed to amplify the voices of composers of diverse backgrounds who had one thing in common: the pursuit of their unique version of an American Dream. The first half of this program is an unannounced collection of pieces intertwined with inspirational quotes to guide the listener through this journey, followed by one of the most iconic pieces written for the genre: Dvořák’s “American” quartet.

The identity of the featured composers will be revealed to the audience during intermission.

PROJECT II - BENJAMIN BRITTEN
Benjamin Britten: String Quartet No. 1 in D major, Op. 25 (1941)
Benjamin Britten: String Quartet No. 2 in C major, Op. 36 (1945)
*****
Benjamin Britten: String Quartet No. 3 in G major, Op. 94 (1975)

Benjamin Britten, undoubtedly one of the most unique and influential composers of the 20th century, passed away in 1976, and we regard his string quartet output as unbelievably powerful and communicative. Join us in celebrating this master’s legacy through the rarely offered lens of his three major works for String Quartet.