October 17, 2021: Escher String Quartet JOSEPH HAYDN (1732-1809) String Quartet in B-flat, Op. 76, No. 4 (“Sunrise”) October 17, 2021: Escher String Quartet When Count Joseph Erdödy commissioned the Opus 76 Quartets in 1796, Haydn had recently returned to Vienna from the second of his highly successful London visits. He had always composed with confidence, but a certain new boldness in his style may have come from the realization that the entire Western world considered him the greatest living composer. The six “Erdödy” Quartets show formal experiments (continued, as mentioned above, in his Opus 77 quartets) both within or instead of sonata-form movements, a new profundity in their extremely slow-paced Adagios, fast “modern” minuets—scherzos in all but name—and more weight and novel tonal approaches in their finales. In June 1797 Haydn played some or all of the quartets on the piano for Swedish diplomat Frederik Silverstolpe, who considered them “more than masterly and full of new thoughts.” The Quartets were completed in time for a September 1797 performance at Eisenstadt as part of the grand festivities surrounding the visit of the Viceroy of Hungary, Palatine Archduke Joseph. Count Erdödy’s rights to the Quartets precluded their being published until 1799. That year English music historian Charles Burney wrote to Haydn that he “never received more pleasure from instrumental music: [the Quartets] are full of invention, fire, good taste, and new effects.” The B-flat major Quartet exudes the composer’s supreme confidence and originality: in one of the greatest openings in chamber music, the lovely first violin melody rises out of a chord sustained by the three lower instruments in a wonderful sunrise effect that earned the Quartet its nickname. Several commentators have remarked on the feeling of growth that this idea initiates in the movement. The continuation of the main theme brings great contrast with an energetic idea that fosters all the fiery passages in the movement, including the remarkable fortissimo bursts that close the exposition and recapitulation. The second theme uses the “sunrise” idea of the opening but in a kind of mirror image—the cello plays a winding descent as the others sustain the chord. Throughout the movement one hears the kind of mastery that so impressed Beethoven as he began writing string quartets with his Opus 18 series. Haydn’s Adagio somberly explores the possibilities of its first five notes. For a major-mode movement, this is one of the most dark-hued in the repertoire and seems to create a direct link with the poetic slow movements of Beethoven’s later quartets. Delicate filigree erupts not merrily but poignantly and the great downward leaps at the ends of sections seem to release but not totally relieve built-up tension. The second half, which begins like the opening, exaggerates these qualities with more filigree and wider plunges. For his fast Menuetto Haydn takes a little repeated two-note slur and fashions two entire sections from it. The second much longer section includes a varied return to the first, signaled by the little repeated slur in the cello—a nice bit of humor. Partway through this return, the focus again shifts briefly to the cello, soon followed by the viola. The Menuetto ends with another subtle touch of humor as twice the upward arpeggio fails to resolve in its own register. The contrasting trio evokes a truly rustic atmosphere with its folklike drones in the manner of a musette or bagpipes. The finale is a little masterpiece based on what some suspect is an English folk tune heard on his travels, but which he treats to sophisticated bits of contrapuntal and rhythmic manipulations. The matching first and third sections surround a no less jolly minor-mode section that contains several impish surprises. Following the return of the opening section Haydn takes us on an extended whirlwind ride, suddenly picking up speed only to shift to yet a higher speed for a virtuosic thrill. © Jane Vial Jaffe Return to Parlance Program Notes

COVID-19 POLICIES AND PROTOCOLS COVID-19 INFORMATION FROM PARLANCE CHAMBER CONCERTS An Updated Message to Our Audience Members About Attendance Policies and Protocols Date: August 1, 2026 The safety and security of our audience members, artists, and staff remain our highest priority. In view of recent changes in CDC guidelines and the availability of vaccines and boosters, please note the following updates in Parlance Chamber Concerts’s COVID-19 policies: Masking is optional at Parlance Chamber Concerts’s events. Proof of vaccination is no longer required at PCC performances. If you receive a positive test for Covid-19 or have any onset symptoms in the days prior to our events, please do not attend a Parlance Chamber Concert. You may request refunds, donate your tickets, or request ticket exchanges by writing to parlance@parlancechamberconcerts.org Please review Parlance Chamber Concerts’s Liability Waiver . Complete and up-to-date safety protocols —including any changes— will be included in pre-concert email reminders and our Covid-19 information Page . PCC will continue to monitor all state, federal, and local public health guidelines. We will continue to adjust our policies and protocols accordingly as the situation evolves.

November 19, 2017: Los Angeles Guitar Quartet MUSIC FROM THE TIME OF CERVANTES, ARRANGED FOR FOUR GUITARS “Music from the Time of Cervantes” (arr. W. Kanengiser) November 19, 2017: Los Angeles Guitar Quartet Jácaras – Anonymous (17th century) El Villano – Antonio Martín y Coll Diferéncias Sobre Las Folias – Antonio Martín y Coll Chacona (“La Vida Bona”) – Juan Arañéz Oy Comamos – Juan de Encina In March 2009, LAGQ debuted the theatrical production “The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote” with British actor/comedian John Cleese. Interweaving tales from the classic novel with arrangements of pieces that Cervantes could have heard in his lifetime, it melded music and storytelling. Tonight’s recital includes selections from this production. Jácaras is an anonymous canción (“No hay que decir primor”) from the 17th century. With raucous strumming and castanets imitating horses’ hooves, it accompanies Don Quixote’s departure from his farm to become an adventuring knight. El Villano (“The Rustic”) is a country dance from the anthology “Flores de Música” collected by Antonio Martín y Coll. It introduces Sancho Panza, Quixote’s trusty squire. Diferéncias Sobre Las Folias is a set of variations contrasting on the famous harmonic progression, Folias de Espana. It tells of the famous argument between knight and squire, and of their reconciliation. Chacona (“La Vida Bona”), from the Libro Segunda de Tonos y Villancicos (1624) by Juan Arañes, is one of the most celebrated early examples of the form. The chacona, which by Bach’s time had become one of the most noble and profound of all dance forms, was a suggestive and prohibited danza in 1500s Spain, almost their version of our macarena. It features the lines, “here’s to the good life, good little life: let’s do the Chacona”). Oy comamos y bebamos is a four-voice villancico from the Cancionero Palacio, written by Juan de Encina. The opening stanza is “Hoy comamos y bebamos, y cantemos y holguemos, que mañana ayunaremos” (Today we eat and drink, and sing and make merry, for tomorrow we must fast”). It serves as a fitting epilogue for Don Quixote’s quixotic character. Return to Parlance Program Notes

ABOUT THE 2015-2016 SEASON OCTOBER 4, 2015 AT 3:00 PM Richard Goode, piano Music by Mozart and Brahms On October 4, Parlance Chamber Concerts will welcome back pianist Richard Goode, one of the preeminent musicians of our time. This thrilling artist is universally hailed as a deeply insightful interpreter of the Viennese classics. His emotionally far-ranging program will alternate between two of Mozart’s most dramatic sonatas and two late sets of Brahms’s warmhearted intermezzi, ballades, and romances. LEARN MORE NOVEMBER 15, 2015 AT 3:00 PM Jeremy Denk, piano, and Stefan Jackiw, violin Music by Brahms, Franck, and Ives On November 15, the compelling pianist Jeremy Denk, winner of a 2013 MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, teams up with the scintillating violinist Stefan Jackiw, widely recognized as one of his generation’s most captivating artists. This noteworthy duo will perform cherished sonatas by Brahms and Franck in counterpoint with rarely performed gems by the iconoclastic American master, Charles Ives. Jeremy Denk will enrich the afternoon with his insightful, thought-provoking commentary. LEARN MORE 2015-2016 SEASON OCTOBER 4, 2015 Richard Goode, piano Music by Mozart and Brahms NOVEMBER 15, 2015 Jeremy Denk, piano, and Stefan Jackiw, violin Music by Brahms, Franck, and Ives DECEMBER 13, 2015 Kristin Lee, violin; Paul Watkins, cello; Gilles Vonsattel, piano Music by Beethoven MARCH 6, 2016 Escher String Quartet Music by Mozart, Janacek, and Schubert APRIL 3, 2016 Sir James Galway and Friends Music by Bach MAY 15, 2016 Stephanie Blythe, mezzo-soprano; Craig Terry, piano “As Long As There Are Songs” Artist Roster Parlance Program Notes LOCATION At West Side Presbyterian Church 6 South Monroe Street Ridgewood, NJ 07450 For map and directions, click here . CONCERT AMENITIES Whee lchair Accessible Fr e e Parking for all concerts DECEMBER 13, 2015 AT 3:00 PM Kristin Lee, violin; Paul Watkins, cello; Gilles Vonsattel, piano Music by Beethoven Beethoven will be spotlighted on December 15 as the spectacular young violinist Kristin Lee and pianist Gilles Vonsattel (winners of the coveted Avery Fisher Career Grant) join forces with the celebrated cellist Paul Watkins of the Emerson String Quartet. Their program will feature three highlights of Beethoven’s chamber music: his heroic “Kreutzer” violin sonata, intimate C-major cello sonata, and ever-popular “Ghost” Trio. LEARN MORE MARCH 6, 2016 AT 3:00 PM Escher String Quartet Music by Mozart, Janacek, and Schubert On March 6, the stellar Escher String Quartet will make its long-awaited debut on our series. Championed by the Emerson Quartet, the Escher is one of the few ensembles to be awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant. The fast-rising quartet currently serves as Artists of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Their sumptuous program will include masterworks by Mozart and Janáček, culminating with one of the pillars of the chamber repertoire, Schubert’s “Death and the Maiden” Quartet. LEARN MORE APRIL 3, 2016 AT 3:00 PM Sir James Galway and Friends Music by Bach On April 3, the legendary flutist Sir James Galway returns to Parlance Chambers Concerts with an All-Bach extravaganza. One of the world’s supreme artists, Sir James will share his great love of Bach in a special collaboration with nine brilliant young vocal and instrumental soloists. Highlights of the afternoon will include the ‘Flute Suite’ in B minor and the 4th Brandenburg Concerto. Don’t miss this unforgettable afternoon of music-making! LEARN MORE MAY 15, 2016 AT 3:00 PM Stephanie Blythe, mezzo-soprano; Craig Terry, piano “As Long As There Are Songs” On May 15 the legendary mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe and pianist Craig Terry will take the audience on a musical journey through the American Songbook, sharing gems from some of the greatest composers and lyricists of their age, including Irving Berlin, Saul Chaplin and Sammy Cahn, Harry Warren and Mack Gordon, Jerome Kern and B.G. DeSylva, Harold Arlen, George Gershwin and Johnny Mercer. From tender loves songs to passionate torch songs to melodies that remind us to always “to look for the silver lining,” they defined their generation and helped see our country through the Great Depression and two World Wars. This will be a memorable afternoon of music making and a celebratory conclusion to Parlance Chamber Concert’s 9th season! LEARN MORE

Shirien Taylor, violin Updated bio December 17, 2021 With heavy hearts, we announce the death of Shirien Taylor-Donahue. Shirien was our beloved Principal Second Violin who passed unexpectedly at the tender age of 62. Below are some tributes from members of the orchestra. Shirien and I met each other when I joined the Met Orchestra. She in fact was on my audition committee and later told me that she had voted for me in the deciding final round. But our real friendship developed years later when we decided to carpool together on our long drive from Rockland County to the Met. We were neighbors and often made this trip twice a day. And it wasn’t uncommon that after dropping me off after a rehearsal she would pick up her son Craig from school and drive right back to Lincoln Center for him to attend an ABT rehearsal before she played the evening performance at the Met. We cried on each other’s shoulders during difficult times and laughed tears countless other times when things were good; and things were good most of the time when you were with Shirien. Even this one time when we were in horrific traffic on Riverside drive, desperately trying to get to the Met on time while listening to our orchestra playing the overture to the Marriage of Figaro on the radio, – which we were supposed to be playing as well… She was the most delightful violin teacher for my daughter Sophia when she was about 10 years old. They had so much fun,- often a violin lesson was combined with a cooking or baking lesson as well,- as she was the most incredible cook and had fun sharing it with my daughter. She was there for my family during Hurricane Sandy when we lost our electricity and couldn’t live at our house for a week. She had us stay with her and she cooked for us and made sure we were okay until we could live at home again. She was the most charming hostess at dinner parties which we were so fortunate to be part of many times. Did I mention that she cooked incredibly well,- or that she could do the most beautiful cartwheel in slow motion anybody would ever see? Shirien was a delightful, talented, fun-loving, generous and caring person who got her happiness in life out of taking care of the people who meant the most to her. And for those years, I was lucky enough to be part of her world. It’s hard for me to come to grips with the fact that she was taken from us at such a young age, but I will forever be grateful that my life was connected to hers in such a personal and meaningful way. I will miss her terribly but she will always be in my thoughts and in my heart. Caterina Szepes On tour in Japan As I recall, Shirien was the first violinist to win a Violin Section audition and shortly thereafter the audition for Principal Second – which she won, and had prepared for at the same time that she was playing a full performance/rehearsal load. It seemed ground-breaking, at the time. I first met her before she was at the MET and our conversation led her to say that she felt that a great artist would and should play beautifully in any situation whether as a soloist or in a section. So now I am sure she is happily joining in with our illustrious colleagues in the next realms. Shem Guibbory I had a lot of fun sitting with Shirien; she had a quick laugh and her musical gifts made sharing a stand a delight. I already miss her friendship and spirit. Karen Marx Shirien and I were a month apart when pregnant with our first children. Seen here with former Principal Trumpet Mel Broiles. We shared most of life’s crazy twists and turns spending many wonderful Thanksgivings together . Our kids grew up with wonderful holiday memories together. We all miss her terribly. We commuted for 20+ years helping each other stay awake late nights after the Opera. Always a smile and a hug and her little giggle. Funny memories of a Parks concert in Brooklyn when it started to pour. The concert ended and we had to make a mad dash to the car- we spotted a few black garbage bags on the site so we grabbed two, pulled them over our heads and realized we couldn’t see, so laughing and giggling we poked two holes (uneven of course) in the bags trying all the while to hold our violins and purses thru the pounding rain in the dark like two black zombies bumping into everything! We lost sight of each other but we followed the howls of laughter to stay together! Kathy Caswell The ladies of the orchestra threw us a baby shower in the Orchestra Lounge We have so many fond and loving memories of Shirien over the years. In the 21 years Bob and I ran the Concerts in Windham (1997-2018) Shirien appeared 18 times, most often as concertmaster of the Chamber Orchestra, but also in chamber music, performing Bob’s music and most noteworthy in recital with Peter Serkin. There’s an interesting backstory to that recital. On a 2005 Performance Today broadcast, Fred Child announced Shirien as the violin soloist in the Finzi Romance from Windham, identifying her as principal 2nd violin of the MET Orchestra. On returning from vacation that summer Shirien was surprised to find a voicemail from Peter saying how much he enjoyed the performance and especially her solo. He obviously had gotten her number from the Orchestra secretary at the time. That was their first communication ever. Some years went by and at a C level rehearsal when Peter was to appear with the orchestra he kept looking over at Shirien. They struck up a conversation and he suggested they play together. When Bob and I contacted Peter in early 2010 about doing a solo recital in Windham, he said he’d like to do a joint one with Shirien. Just one of many memories… We miss her terribly and are grateful for our performances with her outside of the MET, but especially for our long, loving friendship. Our hearts go out to Paul, Craig and Livia. Magdalena Golczewski Shirien was a great colleague. She had such a lovely smile and was always up for a good joke. I will miss you. Tom Brennand With her husband Paul Donahue

March 9, 2025: Ravel’s 150th Birthday Concert, with Erika Baikoff, Soprano; Soohong Park, piano Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) Manteau de fleurs for soprano and piano Ballade de la reine morte d’aimer for soprano and piano March 9, 2025: Ravel’s 150th Birthday Concert, with Erika Baikoff, Soprano; Soohong Park, piano Ravel is one of the most famous composers never to win the prestigious annual Prix de Rome administered by the Paris Conservatory, though he entered five times. Even though he was often a blatant frontrunner, corruption within the judging system, especially in their dismissal of his non-traditional harmonic style, eventually brought reform, but his third loss in 1903 brought with his dejection a need to take on some commissions purely for money. One of these, “Manteau des fleurs” (Cloak of flowers) meant he had to set a text by actor Paul Gravollet (pseudonym for Paul Barthélemy Jeulin), who somehow convinced twenty-two composers to set poems of his for a collection published in December 1905 under the title Les frissons . Ravel took pleasure in employing whole-tone chords and consecutive ninths that he had avoided for the Prix. Does the persistence of pink now resonate more with the 2024 Barbie revival craze? The “Ballade de la reine morte d’aimer” (Ballad of the queen who died of love) is one of Ravel’s earliest song settings, written in 1893 just around the time when composing came to the forefront of Ravel’s career path alongside piano. It also coincided with his acquaintance with non-establishment figure Erik Satie. The text by Belgian writer Roland de Mar allowed Ravel to delve not only into Satie’s aesthetic as seen in his Trois mélodies (1887), but to invoke archaic-sounding fifths and especially the “great bells of Bohemia and the little bells of Thule.” Bell imagery would take on great significance in Ravel=s later works. —©Jane Vial Jaffe Texts and Translations Manteau des fleurs Toutes les fleurs de mon jardin sont roses, Le rose sied à sa beauté. Les primevères sont les premières écloses, Puis viennent les tulipes et les jacinthes roses, Les jolis oeillets, les si belles roses, Toute la variété des fleurs si roses Du printemps et de l’été! Le rose sied à sa beauté! Toutes mes pivoines sont roses, Roses aussi sont mes glaïeuls, Roses mes géraniums; seuls, Dans tout ce rose un peu troublant, Les lys ont le droit d’être blancs. Et quand elle passe au milieu des fleurs Emperlées de rosée en pleurs, Dans le parfum grisant des roses, Et sous la caresse des choses Tout grâce, amour, pureté! Les fleurs lui font un manteau rose Dont elle pare sa beauté. —Paul Gravollet Ballade de la reine morte d=aimer En Bohême était une Reine, Douce soeur du Roi de Thulé, Belle entre toutes les Reines, Reine par sa toute Beauté. Le grand Trouvère de Bohême Un soir triste d’automne roux Lui murmura le vieux: je t’aime! Âmes folles et cœurs si fous! Et la Très Belle toute blanche Ballad of the Queen Who Died of Love In Bohemia there once was a queen, sweet sister to the king of Thule, beautiful among all other queens, queen by her beauty alone. The great Bohemian trouvère one sad evening in red autumn murmured to her the old: “I love you!” Crazy souls and such mad hearts! And the all-white Pure Beauty the gentle poet loved so much that at that instant her white soul expired toward the stars. The great bells of Bohemia and the little bells of Thule pealed the supreme hosanna of the queen who died of love. Cloak of Flowers All the flowers in my garden are pink, pink suits her beauty. The primroses are the first to bloom, then come the tulips and the pink hyacinths, The pretty carnations, such beautiful roses, all the varieties of such pink flowers of spring and summer! Pink suits her beauty! All my peonies are pink, pink also are my gladioli, pink my geraniums; however, in all this disturbing pinkness, the lilies have the right to be white. And when she passes through the flowers pearly with teardrops of dew, among the heady perfume of roses, and under the caress of these things all is grace, love, purity! The flowers make her a pink cloak with which she adorns her beauty. Le doux Poète tant aima Que sur l’heure son âme blanche Vers les étoiles s’exhala. Les grosses cloches de Bohême Et les clochettes de Thulé Chantèrent l’hosana suprême De la Reine morte d’aimer. —Roland de Mar Return to Parlance Program Notes

VIANO QUARTET Praised for their “virtuosity, visceral expression, and rare unity of intention” (Boston Globe), the Viano Quartet has quickly soared to international acclaim as one of the most dynamic and in-demand string quartets of their generation. Winners of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2025, the ensemble has captivated audiences worldwide ever since they were awarded First Prize at the 13th Banff International String Quartet Competition, with appearances at renowned venues such as Lincoln Center in New York, Berlin’s Konzerthaus, Toronto’s Koerner Hall, Hong Kong’s City Hall, and London’s Wigmore Hall. The Viano Quartet are Bowers Program Artists at The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center from 2024-2027. Highlights of the Viano Quartet’s 2025–26 season include debut performances at London’s Southbank Centre, the Frick Collection in New York, Dublin’s National Concert Hall, Coast Live Music, Friends of Chamber Music Kansas City, Apex Concerts, the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, the Fortas Series at the Kennedy Center, Premiere Performances HK, and a mainstage full recital debut at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. The quartet also makes return appearances at Stanford Live, Forte Chamber Music, the Beaches Fine Arts Series, the Buffalo Chamber Music Society’s Slee Series (for the second half of their Beethoven cycle), Chamber Music Albuquerque, and the Sanibel Music Festival. The quartet looks forward to visiting residencies this season at Stanford University through the St. Lawrence Legacy Series, the University of Victoria, Music in the Morning in Vancouver, and the Auditorium Chamber Music Series at the University of Idaho. This season also features exciting collaborations with mandolinist Avi Avital, pianist Sir Stephen Hough, pianist Gilbert Kalish, clarinetist Anthony McGill, guitarist Miloš Karadaglić, and singer-songwriter Vienna Teng. Equally committed to both beloved masterworks and contemporary repertoire, the Viano Quartet actively collaborates with today’s leading composers, including Sir Stephen Hough, Kevin Lau, Chris Rogerson, and Caroline Shaw. They are set to premiere a newly written string quartet by Indian American composer Reena Esmail in the summer of 2026. The quartet’s recent discography highlights the ensemble’s range across both traditional and modern repertoire. Their first full-length album Voyager was newly released in summer 2025 with Apple Music/Platoon Records. Inspired by humankind's enduring spirit of exploration that connects music and people across vast boundaries, the album features Beethoven’s Op. 130 alongside Alistair Coleman’s Moonshot . Their debut EP Portraits was released in 2023 as one of the first albums to be launched on the Curtis Studio label, featuring works by Schubert, Florence Price, Tchaikovsky, and Ginastera. Passionate about sharing their love for chamber music with the next generation of musicians, the quartet has worked with some of the most talented young artists at the world’s leading universities and music institutions, including Northwestern University, Music@Menlo Chamber Music Institute, the Colburn Academy, and Duke University. They have also collaborated with many of the world’s finest artists, including Emanuel Ax, Inon Barnatan, Fleur Barron, Mahan Esfahani, Marc-André Hamelin, James Ehnes, Bridget Kibbey, Paul Neubauer, David Shifrin, and Pinchas Zukerman. The Viano Quartet was formed in Los Angeles at the Colburn Conservatory of Music in 2015. Each member of the quartet is grateful for the unwavering support from their mentors at the Curtis Institute and Colburn Conservatory, including members of the Dover, Guarneri, and Tokyo string quartets. "Viano" is a portmanteau that symbolizes how the four individual instruments of a string quartet—each beginning with the letter "v"—work harmoniously as one, like a piano, creating a unified instrument called the "Viano." OFFICIAL BIO FOR THE 2025-2026 SEASON. LAST UPDATED JULY 2025. PLEASE DESTROY ALL PREVIOUSLY DATED MATERIALS. https://www.opus3artists.com/artists/viano-quartet

SARAH CROCKER VONSATTEL, VIOLIN Violinist Sarah Crocker Vonsattel has been a member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra since 2008. She previously held positions in the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and the Colorado Symphony. Sarah has appeared as soloist with the musicians of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Syracuse Symphony, and the Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra, among others. Recent performances include appearances at Lake Tahoe Summerfest, the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series, the Bronxville Chamber Music Series, Downtown Music at Grace Church, the New Marlborough House Concerts, and the Syracuse Society for New Music. As a founding member of the Verklärte Quartet, Sarah was a Grand Prize Winner of the 2003 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, leading to concert tours in the U.S. and Italy with this ensemble. A proponent of new music, Sarah has appeared with the iO string quartet and the Talea Ensemble and can be heard on the Bridge Records label performing the music of Poul Ruders and Tod Machover. She has appeared as both performer and faculty member at festivals including the Orfeo International Music Festival (Italy), the Wellesley Composers Conference (Massachusetts), and the Musical Friends Academy (Tunisia). She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she was a student of David Updegraff, and a Master of Music degree from the Juilliard School, where she studied with Ronald Copes and Naoko Tanaka. In her spare time, she enjoys distance running and traveling.

Lucy Shelton, soprano “In the forefront was Lucy Shelton, a new-music diva if there ever was one, performing with fire, sensitivity, astounding surety of pitch, and what seemed like love abounding.” —The Boston Globe The only winner of two Walter W. Naumburg Awards—for both chamber music and solo singing—American soprano Lucy Shelton is an internationally recognized exponent of 20th- and 21st-Century repertory, having premiered over 100 works by many of today’s preeminent composers. Notable among these are Elliott Carter’s Tempo e Tempi and Of Challenge and Of Love, Oliver Knussen’s Whitman Settings, Joseph Schwantner’s Magabunda, Poul Ruders’s The Bells, Stephen Albert’s Flower of the Mountain, and Robert Zuidam’s opera Rage d’Amours. She has premiered Gerard Grisey’s L’Icone Paradoxiale with the Los Angeles Philharmonic; sung Pierre Boulez’s Le Visage Nuptial under the composer’s direction in Los Angeles, Chicago, London and Paris; performed György Kurtag’s The Sayings of Peter Bornemisza with pianist Sir Andras Schiff in Vienna and Berlin; and made her Aldeburgh Festival debut in the premiere of Alexander Goehr’s Sing, Ariel. Ms. Shelton has exhibited special skill in dramatic works, including Luciano Berio’s Passaggio with the Ensemble InterContemporain, Sir Michael Tippett’s The Midsummer Marriage (for Thames Television), Luigi Dallapiccola’s Il Prigioniero (her BBC Proms debut), and Bernard Rands’ Canti Lunatici. Highlights of past seasons include Ms. Shelton’s 2010 Grammy Nomination (with the Enso Quartet) for the Naxos release of Ginastera’s string quartets; her Zankel Hall debut with the Met Chamber Orchestra and Maestro James Levine in Carter’s A Mirror On Which To Dwell; and, in celebration of the work’s centenary, multiple performances of a staged Pierrot Lunaire with ten different ensembles worldwide (including eighth blackbird, the Da Capo Chamber Players, and Da Camera of Houston). Ms. Shelton’s numerous festival appearances have included the Aspen, Santa Fe, Ojai, Tanglewood, Chamber Music Northwest, Caen, and Salzburg festivals. Among the major orchestras with which she has worked are those of Amsterdam, Boston, Chicago, Cologne, St. Louis, Denver, London, New York, Paris, Munich, and Tokyo, working with such conductors as Sir Simon Rattle, Mstislav Rostropovich, Marin Alsop, Leonard Slatkin, Ingo Metzmacher, and Alan Gilbert. Ms. Shelton’s extensive discography is on the Nonesuch, Deutsche Grammophon, Koch International, NMC, Bridge, BIS, Albany and Innova labels. A native of California, Ms. Shelton’s primary mentor was mezzo-soprano Jan De Gaetani. In recognition of her contribution to the field of contemporary music, she received Honorary Doctorate Degrees from both Pomona College (2003) and the Boston Conservatory (2013). Ms. Shelton has taught at the Third Street Settlement School in Manhattan, the Eastman School, the New England Conservatory, the Cleveland Institute, the Tanglewood Music Center, and the Britten-Pears School. In the fall of 2007, she joined the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music’s innovative Contemporary Performance Program. Additionally, Shelton teaches privately in her New York City studio.

January 10, 2010 – Emerson String Quartet FELIX MENDELSSOHN (1809-1847) String Quartet in F Minor, Op. 80 January 10, 2010 – Emerson String Quartet Felix Mendelssohn grew up with every familial and material advantage, and he made the most of his unique opportunities. He composed brilliantly from an early age and developed astonishing virtuosity as a pianist, organist, and conductor. Highly educated, he loved literature, poetry, and philosophy and became an adept linguist, painter, and writer. His ever-supportive father, Abraham, a wealthy banker, bought a magnificent estate in Berlin, which he turned into an artistic focal point of the culturally rich city. Distinguished artists, literary figures, and well-to-do colleagues attended the Mendelssohn family’s salon concerts, where the children performed, often playing their own music with full orchestras hired by their father. A child prodigy on the order of Mozart, Felix was admired by no less a figure than Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who told the boy, “I am Saul and you are David. Come to me when I am sad and discouraged and quiet my soul with your sweet harmonies.” Felix’s older sister Fanny was – like Mozart’s older sister, Nannerl – also a child prodigy of remarkable capabilities. At 13 Fanny scored a Händel Oratorio for full orchestra as an exercise, and as a birthday gift for her father, she memorized and performed all 24 Preludes from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier. Although her compositional skills were not encouraged to the same degree as her brother’s, she wrote 466 pieces of her own over the course of her life. While the Mozart siblings eventually grew apart, Felix and Fanny grew increasingly devoted to each other during their short lives. There was never a hint of rivalry or jealousy between them. On the contrary, they dedicated many works to each other, advocated for each other’s music, and expressed extreme mutual fondness and admiration throughout their lives. When in 1847 Felix received the news of his beloved sister’s sudden death by a massive stroke, he was so devastated that he immediately suffered a stroke of his own. Unable to attend her funeral, he sank into a profound depression. His wife insisted that he take time off from his daunting performance and administrative schedule to travel with their family to the Interlaken region of Switzerland, where he could regain his physical health and emotional equilibrium. While in Switzerland, he spent his days hiking in the mountains, making watercolors and drawings of the Swiss landscape, and composing his string quartet in F minor, which he completed in September of that year. Soon after returning to Germany, however, his inconsolable grief came back to him. He suffered another stroke and within two months was dead at the age of 38. The F-Minor String Quartet, his last completed work, expresses his rage and despair at the loss of his beloved sister. Although Mendelssohn’s music is admired for its flawless technique and aura of classical refinement, some have criticized it for showing too much emotional restraint. The F-minor quartet completely belies this portrayal. It is, from beginning to end, a work of unprecedented intensity and turbulence, arguably his most impassioned and tragic work. The opening movement begins in a burst of violent, shuddering tremolos, clearly representing the shock and grief he must have felt when he was first informed of his beloved sister’s death. Thunderbolt-like fortissimos and stomping accents express the depth of his despair. The music is riven by extreme contrasts as Mendelssohn tries to calm himself, only to be wrenched anew by the slashing pain of loss. Toward the end of the movement a unison outburst ratchets the intensity up another notch, and the movement careens to a desperate conclusion. A Scherzo follows, but not the typically light, “Mendelssohnian” Scherzo of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The mood is operatic in its agitation, with fierce, off-kilter syncopations, heavy accents, and severe passages where the entire quartet again plays in unison. The contrasting Trio introduces a Verdian ghost dance in the viola and cello, which accompany a low, ominous violin duet. After returning to the agitated Scherzo, the ghosts slink off in a spooky, phantasmal coda. The Adagio is a warmly nostalgic song without words, reminiscent of the intimate piano pieces that Felix and Fanny wrote and often dedicated to each other. Closely woven string textures reflect their tight emotional bond. Although the movement begins as a wistful elegy, it builds to a cathartic fortissimo climax in which funereal, dotted rhythms predominate. The intensity gradually recedes although the dotted rhythms continue to echo through the texture, and the movement ends in a sweetly resigned pianissimo. Desperation and drama return full force in the final movement of the quartet. Shivering passagework is interrupted by crashing, dissonant chords. Extreme virtuosity is demanded of the four quartet members as Mendelssohn’s final work drives headlong toward a tragic conclusion. By Michael Parloff Return to Parlance Program Notes

September 24, 2017: Sean Lee, violin; Michael Brown, piano LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770–1827) Romance No. 2 in F major, op. 50 September 24, 2017: Sean Lee, violin; Michael Brown, piano Beethoven may have written his two Romances for violin and orchestra as potential slow movements for an unfinished concerto (WoO 5), but in the end he published them as separate pieces. The F major Romance may date from as early as 1798. In German, Romanze designates a songlike instrumental piece (specifically in alla breve meter or “cut time”), of which the French Romance is a special subcategory used for violin concerto slow movements by composers such as Viotti. Beethoven’s sweetly “singing” Romances clearly show his familiarity with this French style. The F major Romance is especially famous for its high range and sweet melodic line, which may partly account for its being played more often than its companion in G. Beethoven interjects contrasting orchestral sections at the ends of thematic statements, characterizing them with majestic long-short rhythms. He creates a wonderful touch at the end when his accompaniment provides a double echo of the solo violin’s last three notes. © Jane Vial Jaffe Return to Parlance Program Notes

October 30, 2022: EMERSON STRING QUARTET DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH (1906–1975) String Quartet No. 12 in D-flat, Op. 133 October 30, 2022: EMERSON STRING QUARTET Toward the end of his life, Shostakovich was beset by multiple health problems—loss of feeling and mobility in his limbs, a heart attack, a broken ankle—all of which brought his performing career to an end and curtailed many of his civic activities. With sadly more time on his hands, lengthy hospital stays, and deaths of people in his circle, he began thinking more about his own mortality. Many of his late works—the vocal cycles, Symphony No. 14, and the last four string quartets—reflect this preoccupation by plumbing new depths. While living at the Composers’ Union retreat at Repino, Shostakovich wrote to his friend Isaak Glikman on March 9, 1968, that he constantly feared he would die and leave whatever piece he was working on incomplete. Just two days later he finished his String Quartet No. 12 in D-flat major and wrote to the first violinist of the Beethoven Quartet, Dmitry Tsïganov, whose birthday was March 12, asking him to accept the dedication. Two years earlier he had dedicated his Eleventh Quartet to the memory of Vasily Shirinsky, second violinist of the Quartet until his death in 1965, and thus Shostakovich was continuing his plan of writing a quartet for each member of the group that had premiered most of his quartets. Shostakovich was quite pleased with the work, reportedly answering Tsïganov’s question about whether it was “chamber” in its proportions by saying, “No, no—it’s a symphony, a symphony.” The Beethoven Quartet gave the private premiere on June 14, 1968, at the first creative convocation of the new secretariat of the Russian Composers’ Union. Shostakovich commented on the magnificence of the performance, and the favorable reaction of musicians in attendance made its way into the press in advance of the public premiere in Moscow on September 14. The audience at both performances recognized a newness of form and language in the Twelfth Quartet, in particular its reliance on twelve-tone themes. Though Shostakovich was well-aware of the avant-garde tendencies of his younger colleagues and had occasionally incorporated twelve-tone rows himself, he was now using them in a new way to suit his own purposes. He described his approach to twelve-tone writing in a remarkable encapsulation of his ideals just before the private premiere: As far as the use of strictly technical devices from such musical “systems” as dodecaphony or aleatory is concerned . . . everything in good measure. If, let’s say, a composer sets himself the obligatory task of writing dodecaphonic music, then he artificially limits his possibilities, his ideas. The use of elements from these complex systems is fully justified if it is dictated by the concept of the composition. . . . You know, to a certain extent I think the formula “the end justifies the means” is valid in music. All means? All of them, if they contribute to the end objective. What makes Shostakovich’s use of twelve-tone material in the Twelfth Quartet so fascinating is the way in which he juxtaposes it with the work’s tonal anchor of D-flat major. One might expect the twelve-tone writing to sound antagonistic and be settled by the reassurance of tonality, but Shostakovich’s D-flat major passages seem instead to explore other realms that are at times anguished, brutal, or drained of enjoyment. Laid out unconventionally in two movements with the second much longer than the first, the work opens with a wandering twelve-tone gesture in the cello, which is treated along with other dodecaphic fragments as a delineating device rather according to the “rules” of serial technique. The answering, low-register D-flat music with its oscillating rising patterns sounds sorrowfully contemplative and searching. Another twelve-tone utterance, now in the first violin, brings on a kind of waltz that is far-removed from a glittering social occasion, and yet another twelve-tone fragment introduces an idea characterized by staccato repeated notes. These ideas become joined or layered in myriad ingenious ways with the twelve-tone interjections serving as points of departure. The hushed, fragmented ending still seems in search of closure despite its D-flat fade-out. The huge second movement takes on the symphonic proportions and sonorities Shostakovich suggested in his remarks to Tsïganov. He rolls several movement-like sections into one, beginning with an almost savage mixed-meter “scherzo” that is pierced by individual trills and a jabbing melodic idea begun by the cello. Eventually the tumult dies away with a somber cello recitative that initiates a “slow movement” (Adagio) comprised of funereal chanting juxtaposed with searing melodic lines of great pathos. A striking, insistent pizzicato solo by the first violin based on first-movement figures launches a remarkable section that further develops materials from the entire work. Shostakovich combines motives and textures from the scherzo and the Adagio, and at a climactic point has the lower strings play dense pizzicato chords containing all twelve pitches. A brief revisiting of the Adagio’s sustained pathos brings a return to the first movement’s contemplative sorrow as if “ending with the beginning.” Shostakovich has more to say, however, and revs up the music of the “scherzo” to drive relentlessly to the conclusion. © Jane Vial Jaffe Return to Parlance Program Notes