Illustrious Fine Arts Quartet Presents Rare Early Music by Enescu

A permanent guest at the "George Enescu" International Festival in Bucharest, The Fine Arts Quartet is renowned for its subtle and precise interpretation of the great Romanian composer’s often difficult music. In a much-anticipated recital, Ralph Evans (violin), Efim Boico (violin), Gil Sharon (viola) and Niklas Schmidt (cello) team up with pianists Fabio and Gisele Witkowski and bassist Alexander Bickard to present a trove of rarely performed Enescu chamber works, which are going to be released by Naxos in August 2023.   

The event is organized by the College of Performing Arts at The New School with the support of the Romanian Cultural Institute and takes place at the New School Auditorium (66 West 12th Street, New York, NY 10011) on October 26 at 7:30 p.m. Entrance is free, but you must register your attendance HERE.   

PROGRAM:   

Prélude and Gavotte for two pianos, violin & cello (1898) 

Piano Quintet in D major (1896) 

Aubade (Trio for violin, viola, cello) (1899) 

Pastorale, Menuet Triste, and Nocturne (for violin and piano, four hands) (1900)

Romanian Rhapsody No.1 (for piano quintet plus string bass) (1901)  

THE FINE ARTS QUARTET, “one of the gold-plated names in chamber music" (Washington Post), ranks among the most distinguished ensembles in chamber music today, with an illustrious history of performing success and an extensive legacy of over 200 recorded works. Founded in Chicago in 1946, the Quartet is one of the elite few to have recorded and toured internationally for over three quarters of a century. The Quartet's renowned violinists, Ralph Evans (prizewinner in the International Tchaikovsky Competition) and Efim Boico (former concertmaster of the Orchestre de Paris under Barenboim) have performed together for 39 years. They are joined with two eminent musicians: violist Gil Sharon (founder of the Amati Ensemble), and cellist Niklas Schmidt (co-founder of the Trio Fontenay). Many of the Quartet's latest releases have been selected for inclusion on Grammy® Awards entry lists in the categories "Best Classical Album" and/or "Best Chamber Music Performance" and have received multiple awards and distinctions, among them: “Gramophone award-winner" and "recording of legendary status” (Gramophone Classical Music Guide), “Key Recording/Top Recommendation” (Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music), “Editor’s Choice” (Gramophone Magazine), "Critic's Choice" (American Record Guide), BBC Music Magazine Choice”, "Recording of the Year" [3 times] (MusicWeb International), and a Grammy® Award for producer Steven Epstein (Fauré Quintets with Cristina Ortiz),  The Quartet also received the CMA/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming, given jointly by Chamber Music America and the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers. The Quartet's latest CDs (Mozart, Dvorak) were released by Naxos in 2021. See: Naxos news. The Quartet members have nurtured many of today's top young international quartets while teaching at the Sorkin International Institute of Chamber Music in Milwaukee and serving as guest professors at major conservatories in Paris, London, New York, Beijing, Hamburg, and music festivals all over the world.

Please be aware that the public must follow the New School Health and Safety Guidelines, as follows:

Event guests and visitors must provide proof of up-to-date vaccination, including a booster when eligible. The following protocols will be in place to ensure a safe and healthy experience for everyone:

Masks must be worn in concert and lecture venues where events are held. Masks are encouraged and optional elsewhere indoors.  The New School has partnered with CLEAR to utilize Health Pass, an online tool that safely and simply verifies proof of COVID-19 vaccination. For detailed instructions on downloading and using CLEAR, visit the “Events and Gatherings” section on The New School Access to Campus page. Specific questions about using the CLEAR Health Pass to attend an on-campus event can be directed to the event organizer.  To ensure expedited event check-in, event guests should set up a CLEAR Health Pass account with proof of vaccination prior to the event.