2014 String Quartet Intensive and Festival Opens January 7

Winter term at Oberlin often means a quiet month between semesters, when the bustle of campus life takes a break.

But this January the conservatory will come alive like never before: The first String Quartet Intensive and Festival takes place January 7 through 29 in multiple venues across campus.

In store are three weeks packed with master classes and performances by renowned guest artists and string quartets, and two evenings of music by student ensembles. All events are free and open to the public.

"The list of performers represents the spectrum of what is great about Oberlin chamber music," says Associate Professor of Viola Michael Strauss, who coordinated the String Quartet Intensive and Festival along with fellow members of the conservatory faculty.

Musicians involved include the Jupiter Quartet, Oberlin's current artists in residence, featuring alumna violist Liz Freivogel ’00; the Wasmuth Quartet, which won a silver medal at the 2013 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and which includes Oberlin alumni Brendan Shea ’09 (violin) and Abigail Rojansky ’11 (viola); and the Cleveland-based Cavani Quartet, two-time winner of Chamber Music America’s Guarneri String Quartet Award for Artistic Excellence. Conservatory faculty and student ensembles will also perform.

The intensive opens January 7 with a guest recital by violinist Areta Zhulla of Lincoln Center’s Chamber Music Society Two. On January 25, guest violinist Timothy Lees, concertmaster of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, will perform with the Jupiter Quartet. The festivities close on January 29 with a master class and recital by acclaimed cellist Zuill Bailey.

“It is going to be a very satisfying month of music making and a delight for the ears of our audience,” says Strauss.

The complete schedule is as follows:

TUESDAY, JANUARY 7: Guest recital by violinist Areta Zhulla of Lincoln Center’s Chamber Music Society Two, with James Howsmon, piano (8 p.m., Kulas Recital Hall)

FRIDAY, JANUARY 10: A Viennese Evening, featuring Oberlin faculty and Areta Zhulla (8 p.m., Kulas Recital Hall)

TUESDAY, JANUARY 14: Wasmuth Quartet, silver medalists in the 2013 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, featuring Oberlin Conservatory alumni (8 p.m., Stull Recital Hall)

THURSDAY, JANUARY 16 and 23: Two concerts featuring student chamber music quartets and other ensembles (8 p.m., Kulas Recital Hall) For information on the January 23 performance, click here.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17: Guest master class and performance by the Cavani Quartet, two-time winner of Chamber Music America’s Guarneri String Quartet Award for Artistic Excellence (3 p.m. master class, David H. Stull Recital Hall; 8 p.m. performance, Kulas Recital Hall)

SATURDAY, JANUARY 25: Gala Concert, featuring Oberlin artists-in-residence Jupiter Quartet, Oberlin faculty and students, and guest violinist Timothy Lees, concertmaster of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (8 p.m., Warner Concert Hall)

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29: Guest master class and recital by renowned cellist Zuill Bailey (4 p.m. master class and 8 p.m. recital, David H. Stull Recital Hall)

For more information, including updates on live streams of certain events, please visit the Events Calendar at oberlin.edu.