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THE MIRÓ QUARTET OPENS THE CHAMBER MUSIC HOUSTON SEASON SEP 1, 2014 SHANNON LANGMAN NO COMMENT HOUSTON, MUSIC IMAGE ABOVE: William Fedkenheuer, John Largess, Joshua Gindele, Daniel Ching. Photo by Michael Carter. Opening the Chamber Music Houston Season for the second year in a row, The Miró Quartet brings the world premiere season of Gunther Schuller s Quartet No. 5, on Sept. 16 at the Stude Concert Hall, Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. The Miró Quartet began in 1996 in Austin, Texas, and is currently in residence at Butler School of Music at University of Texas at Austin. The group consists of violinist Daniel Ching, cellist Joshua Gindele, violinist John Largess, and violinist William Fedkenheuer. William Fedkenheuer, John Largess, Joshua Gindele, Daniel Ching. Photo by Michael Carter. Cellist and one of Miró Quartet s founding members, Gindele reflects on the impact of opening the season for Chamber Music Houston, and envisions hope of a legacy. We are stewards of this great art and follow many of our mentors to the stage of Chamber Music Houston, says Gindele. It s humbling to think that such people as Isaac Stern, Menahem Pressler, and the Cleveland, Juilliard, Emerson and Tokyo Quartets have taken that very stage before us. I hope some years from now, our pupils will say the same when they take the Stude stage at Rice University for the first time. 3 of 8 9/3/14 10:53 AM
The group brings a premiere to open Chamber Music Houston this year. Schuller s Quarte No. 5 was commissioned and first performed at the Tucson Winter Chamber Music Festiva in March 2014. Schuller, a long time friend of Miró, has created a work with hidden thema elements, striking jazz flavors and the familiar classical form. Gindele gives us a taste of piece by suggesting what a wine pairing might be: I would have to say an American-grow sparkling wine made by one of the great French champagne houses. It is uniquely Americ but with the depth and history that comes with things rooted in great tradition. Like the style of the piece, the relationship of the composer to the group is rooted and established. Schuller has been a part of the group s life since 1998, and Miró has premiered three of his works. He knows how to write for each of us. He also knows that I love jazz and have played a little bass, so he writes some great walking lines for me, says Gindele. At the same time, I have a tendency to fall in love with my own sound, so he also has us playing some truly beautiful and soaring tunes. Joshua Gindele, John Largess, William Fedkenheuer, Daniel Ching. Photo by Michael Carter. Miró s distinct sound is twenty years in the making We all came into the group as very different musicians and personalities, but the tension that causes friction musically, no personally is an incredibly powerful tool, Gindele explains, You can hear the individua and their ideas but only through the cohesion that comes with a non-hierarchical, respectful, and an all-for-one attitude. Finding the common ground among the personalities and allowing a certain amount of malleability to accommodate for everybody s personality was paramount from the beginnings of the group. Miró is renowned for their synchronization and feel; this season s program shows their signature style with the Schubert Quartet in D Minor, D. 810, also featured on their most recent recorded album, Schubert Interrupted. Haydn s passionate String Quartet in D Mino Op. 76, No. 2 Fifths rounds out the CMH program. The Miró Quartet ends their tour with performances of two complete Beethoven String Quartet cycles and travel spanning from Buffalo, New York for the Slee Series, to Suntory Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 4 of 8 9/3/14 10:53 AM
Their 18 years of performing intriguing programing and recording albums of quartet literature with a signature flavor have made an impact. We always try to do what is right for the music and what we, as a group, believe in and feel passionate about, says Gindel The by-product has been a robust and interesting career that we take pride in. Our goal was never to achieve a certain level of fame or notoriety but rather, to make a life performing the works of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and the composers who followed those great masters. SHANNON LANGMAN TAGS: AND VIOLINIST WILLIAM FEDKENHEUER CELLIST JOSHUA GINDELE CHAMBER MUSIC HOUSTON MIRÓ QUARTET VIOLINIST DANIEL CHING VIOLIST JOHN LARGESS ABOUT SHANNON LANGMAN Shannon Langman is a Houston based photographer, singer, writer and educator. 5 of 8 9/3/14 10:53 AM
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SHANNON LANGMAN SYDNEY SKYBETTER MANUEL ME POPULAR TAGS EDITOR'S REMARKS Ballet Austin CAMH dallas Dallas Black Dance Theatre EDITOR'S REMARKS INSIDER NOTES dallas international film festival dallas museum of art dallas opera Dallas Theater Center DiverseWorks DMA Houston Ballet kitchen dog theater Main Street Theater INSIDER NOTES NANCY WOZNY JUL 8, 2014 Houston-based conceptual sculptor Dario Robleto will be the next artist... McNay Art Museum Menil Collection MFAH Museum of Fine Arts Houston Nancy Wozny San Antonio Museum of Art second thought theatre Stanton Welch Texas Ballet Theater the Barn titas EDITOR'S REMARKS INSIDER NOTES INSIDER NOTES NANCY WOZNY MAY 6, 2014 Meet May, a month in which we find a blast... Copyright 2014 Arts+Culture Magazine. All Rights Reserved. Site by Black New Media 8 of 8 9/3/14 10:53 AM