2011-2012 Season

Past Seasons | Current Season | 2012-2013

October 16, 2011 - Trio Voronezh
Mill Valley Chamber Music Society welcomes back TRIO VORONEZH, whom we had for a delightful concert ten years ago. Classically trained at the Conservatory in Voronezh, Russia, the members Valerie Petrukhin, Vladimir Volokhin (National Champion, All-Russian Domra Competition) and Sergei Teleshev, formed the trio in 1993 in their native working-class city of Voronezh. They play traditional Russian folk instruments: a double-bass balalaika (the three-stringed Russian national instrument, with a triangular body made of fir), a domra (a three-stringed short-necked ancestor of the mandolin), and a bajan (a chromatic-button accordion, with various registers). The trio's diverse repertoire ranges from the works of Bach, Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky to Russian folk songs, gypsy dance music, and popular songs by Gershwin. This ever-expanding concert material is arranged by the trio's members and performed with extraordinary virtuosity entirely from memory. More recently they have added works by Astor Piazzolla, Alfred Schnittke, and Shostakovich and Strauss. Discovered playing Bach in a Frankfurt, Germany subway station, the trio's debut was at the 1996 Oregon Bach Festival, and first U.S. tour began by bringing down the house on American Public Media's A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor. Trio Voronezh web page

Program: Vivaldi; Bach; Tchaikowsky; Shostakovich; Khachaturian; Piazzola; Strauss; Russian Folk Music; Popular Songs

November 13, 2011 - Concertante
After more than a decade before the public, CONCERTANTE has established itself as a chamber ensemble that combines in equal measure world class virtuosity and an adventurous willingness to explore and enhance the sextet repertoire. Based in New York and comprised of a core of six virtuoso string players, the group performs in varied combinations of instrumentalists in a wide repertoire array. As solo performers who have won important national and inter-national music competitions, they have appeared in such major venues as New York's Carnegie Hall, London's Royal Festival Hall, and Shanghai's Grand Theatre. In 2009-10 Concertante completed its One Plus Five project, an ambitious, six composer commissioning project that brought to the repertoire six new and notable sextets by Lowell Liebermann, Tigran Mansurian, Gabriela Frank, Kevin Puts, Shulamit Ran and Richard Danielpour. It has also offered infrequently performed chamber works by such celebrated composers as Enesco, John Adams, Schoenberg, Martinu, Korngold, and Frank Bridge, among others. www.concertante.org

Program: R. Strauss-Sextet "Capriccio"; Schoenberg-Verklarte Nacht; Brahms-Sextet op. 18

January 22, 2012 - Jupiter Quartet
The JUPITER STRING QUARTET, formed in 2001, is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Nelson Lee and Megan Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (older sister of Meg), and cellist Daniel McDonough (husband of Meg). Daniel, Nelson, and Meg met at the Cleveland Institute of Music, and then recruited Liz, who was at nearby Oberlin College. The quartet finished up their schooling together at the New England Conservatory of Music, where they were in the Professional String Quartet Training Program. They currently reside in Boston. The quartet spent many of their formative years under the instruction of the Cleveland and Takacs Quartets. They believe that chamber music, because of the intensity of its interplay and communication, is one of the most effective ways of spreading an enthusiasm for "classical" music to new audiences. The Jupiter Quartet has received many honors, including first prize in the Banff International String Quartet Competition, grand prize in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, membership in Lincoln Center's Chamber Music Society Two, and Chamber Music America's Cleveland Quartet Award, which "honors and promotes a rising young string quartet whose artistry demonstrates that it is in the process of establishing a major career." The quartet also won the 2005 Young Concert Artists International auditions and now holds YCA's Helen F. Whitaker Chamber Music Chair. Most recently, they were honored to receive an Avery Fisher Career Grant. The quartet concertizes across the United States, Canada, Europe, Mexico, and South America. They have performed in New York's Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, Boston's Jordan Hall, Mexico City's Palacio de Bellas Artes, and Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center, Corcoran Gallery, and Library of Congress. www.jupiterquartet.com

Program: Beethoven "Harp" Qt., op. 74; Bartok-Quartet #6; Mendelssohn-Qt. op.44, #1

March 25, 2012 - Eroica Trio
The most sought-after trio in the world, the Grammy-nominated EROICA TRIO thrills audiences with flawless technical virtuosity, elegance and irresistible enthusiasm. The Trio won the prestigious Naumburg Award, resulting in a highly successful Lincoln Center debut and has since toured the United States, Europe, and Asia. The women who make up the Eroica Trio are all top-ranked, award-winning soloists and have performed on many of the world's great stages. Pianist Erika Nickrenz made her concerto debut in New York's Town Hall at the age of 11. She received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Juilliard School. Nickrenz has toured with Music from Marlboro in addition to tours of Italy, Switzerland, Australia, Tasmania and Colombia. A native of Sydney, Australia, Susie Park made her solo debut at the age of five and holds her Bachelor of Music degree from the Curtis Institute of Music where she studied under Jaime Laredo. Cellist Sara Sant'Ambrogio's international successes include winning a medal at the prestigious International Tchaikovsky Violoncello Competition in Moscow, resulting in tours across North America, Europe, and the Middle East, culminating in a recital at Carnegie Hall which was broadcast on national television. Immediately following its acclaimed Carnegie Hall debut, the Eroica Trio was offered an exclusive five-record contract by EMI Classics Records, which was extended in 2002 to include three additional recordings. . Each summer, the Trio performs at music festivals throughout the world, including the Hollywood Bowl, Aspen, Mostly Mozart, Ravinia, and Spoleto, Italy. www.eroicatrio.com

Program: Cassado-Trio; Shostakovich-Trio op. 67; Ravel-Trio in A

April 15, 2012 - Daedalus Quartet
The DAEDALUS QUARTET was founded in the summer of 2000, and captured the Grand Prize of the 2001 Banff International String Quartet competition, quickly establishing itself among America's outstanding string quartets. The members of the Daedalus Quartet hold degrees from the Juilliard School, Curtis Institute, Cleveland Institute, and Harvard University. Founding members violinist Min-Young Kim and cellist Raman Ramakrishnan grew up in East Patchogue, Long Island; they met violist Jessica Thompson at the Marlboro Festival. Violinist Ara Gregorian joined the Daedalus Quartet in early March, 2010. Daedalus has been Columbia University's Quartet-in-Residence since 2005, and Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Pennsylvania since 2006. In 2007, the Quartet was awarded Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award. The Quartet won Chamber Music America's Guarneri String Quartet Award. Daedalus Quartet has performed in many of the world's leading musical venues; in the United States and Canada these include Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Library of Congress, the Corcoran Gallery in D.C., and Boston's Gardner Museum, as well as on major series in Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Winnipeg, and Vancouver. Abroad the ensemble has been heard in such famed locations as the Musikverein in Vienna, the Mozarteum in Salzburg, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, and the Cite de la Musique in Paris. www.besenarts.com/daedalus/

Program: Haydn-"the Joke" Qt., op.33, #2; Joan Tower- New York (Bay Area Premiere); Dvorak-Quartet op. 105

May 20, 2012 - Young Artists Concert, Marin Music Chest
Subscribers receive a free ticket to the Young Performers Concert of the Marin Music Chest with their subscription. The Mill Valley Chamber Music Society supports the goals of the Marin Music Chest and hopes that subscribers will take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to hear talented young musicians.

MVCMS
PO Box 1907
Mill Valley CA 94942-1907
415-381-4453 (9am-5pm PST) Email

Subscription/Tickets
A season subscription for five concerts is $100 general, $50 for youths 18 and under and full-time college and university students with ID cards. You can purchase a season at pro-rated prices for the first two concerts. Subscribers will receive one free ticket to any concert of the season to bring a friend. We accept personal checks. Subscription Form

Single Concert Tickets
Single tickets are sold at the door for $30, space available.

Tickets available online at brownpapertickets.com (1-800-838-3006).

Concerts
All concerts are Sundays at 5:00pm in the beautiful Mt. Tamalpais United Methodist Church, at the southeast corner of Sycamore and Camino Alto, Mill Valley. We strongly suggest you arrive early to get a seat. Doors open at 4:30 p.m. Map/Directions

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