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TESLA QUARTET string quartet
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ARTISTSArielshort bio
press
Dubbed “technically superb” by The Strad, the Tesla Quartet has garnered top prizes at numerous international competitions,
including the Gold Medal at the 2012 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, Third Prize and the Best Interpretation
of the Commissioned Work at the 6th International Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Competition in Vienna, Third Prize at the
2012 London International String Quartet Competition, and the Prize for the International Summer Academy for Chamber Music
Niedersachsen at the 2013 Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition. The Tesla Quartet was formed at
The Juilliard School in 2008 and quickly established itself as one of the most promising young ensembles in New York, winning Second
Prize at the J.C. Arriaga Chamber Music Competition only a few months after its inception. The London Evening Standard called their
rendition of the Debussy Quartet “a subtly coloured
performance that balanced confidently between intimacy
and extraversion.”
The quartet has enjoyed a busy performing schedule,
both in the States and abroad, with recent international
appearances in Austria, England, and France. During the
2015-16 season the Tesla Quartet will perform across the
U.S., including Alabama, California, Kansas, Michigan,
Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. The quartet
will also begin a community residency in Hickory, North
Carolina that will include performances and workshops at
local colleges, universities, and in the public school system,
as well as a dedicated chamber music series.
Inspired by Nikola Tesla’s words, “Though free to think and
act, we are held together, like the stars in the firmament,
with ties inseparable,” the Tesla Quartet views music as the
incredible, binding force, and strives to create meaningful
connections with their audiences. The Tesla Quartet is Ross
Snyder (violin), Michelle Lie (violin), Edwin Kaplan (viola),
and Serafim Smigelskiy (cello). P H O T O B Y A RT H U R M O E L L E R
“The Tesla players…offered an impressive program of music reaching across centuries of compositional creativity. And they did so with a superb capacity to find the inner heart of every-thing they played, regardless of era, style or technical demand.”
–Don Heckman, The International Review of Music
“Impassioned interpretation was the rule throughout...There were many refined moments of sweet repose too, particularly in the coda that were given duly sensitive treatment by the ensemble, an important contrast that helped to display the many sides of Brahms’s musical personality...[The ensemble] handled it all with an astute combination of power and grace, shifting gears seamlessly throughout the manifold textures.”
–Stephan Bonfield, Calgary Herald
“The Tesla Quartet (US) followed with Debussy’s String Quartet, the fleeting atmospheres of which have defeated some of the world’s finest. This was a subtly coloured perfor-mance that balanced confidently between intimacy and extraversion. A real sense of four players listening to each other did not obstruct a natural rapport with the audience.”
–London Evening Standard
“There was poise, mystery and elegance in the first movement, and playing in the second that was at once strong and delicate, the staccato perfectly judged to both speak and bite, the fortissimo outbursts raw and vehement…The Tesla was technically superb in Debussy’s Quartet, its performance full of urgency, colour and subtle dynamics. This was a masterclass in quartet technique, with great momentum in the last movement.” –The Strad
TESLA QUARTET string quartet
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ARTISTSAriel
RHAPSODY AND IDIOSYNCRASYAs the story goes, French composer Maurice Ravel was honored
with a birthday party during his visit to New York in 1928, and
among the guests was George Gershwin. After an impromptu
performance of Rhapsody in Blue, Gershwin asked Ravel for
composition lessons, to which Ravel, who admired the Ameri-
can’s works, replied, “Why should you be a second-rate Ravel
when you can be a first-rate Gershwin?” In this program, we
feature four composers with unique musical voices. Ravel’s
singular contribution to the quartet repertoire stands out as a
beautiful work of inspired originality. Likewise, Gershwin’s only
quartet, the Lullaby, captures the composer’s tuneful voice.
William Bolcom, one of the most respected living American
composers, draws on that quintessential American musical style,
ragtime, for his Three Rags for string quartet. Finally, composer
and violist Ljova explores the rich melting pot of New York City’s
world music traditions in his Vjola Suite. In one movement, he
dreams about the joy of someday eating a bagel while strolling
down Havana’s Malecón boardwalk.
Works to be performed on the “Rhapsody and Idiosyncrasy”
program include:
William Bolcom, Three Rags
Gershwin, Lullaby for string quartet
Ljova, Vjola Suite
Ravel, String Quartet in F major
VIGIL
This program offers three different composers’ personal takes on
“awareness.” Mozart was highly inspired by Joseph Haydn and
dedicated a set of six string quartets to him. His K. 421 in D minor,
the second of the set, celebrates Haydn’s established and culti-
vated style. As his only quartet in a minor key, this music is at once
dramatic, bold, and introspective. Kevin Puts says of Dark Vigil that
it “was a reaction to the unrelenting pattern of violence that
plagued our country’s elementary and high schools during the year
it was written, 1999. The title was inspired by news footage I saw
of a high school in the Midwest whose students and faculty staged
a student shooting incident as a means of preparation for such an
event.” Rather than relaying a programmatic narrative, Dark Vigil
contemplates the fragility of a mind in this troubling context.
Sibelius’s Quartet Op. 56 in D minor is one of his mature works,
displaying both the conviviality and intimacy of the string quartet
as a genre. Though this quartet is subtitled “Voces Intimae”
(Intimate Voices), Sibelius wasn’t fond of talking about the meaning
behind his music. He said, “You know how the wing of a butterfly
crumbles at a touch? So it is with my compositions; the very
mention of them is fatal,” suggesting that his music should be
experienced and not explained.
Works to be performed on the “Vigil” program include:
Mozart, String Quartet in D minor, K. 421
Kevin Puts, Dark Vigil
Sibelius, String Quartet in D minor, Op. 56 “Voces Intimae”
program offerings
P H O T O B Y A RT H U R M O E L L E R
TESLA QUARTET string quartet
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ARTISTSArielprogram offerings (cont.)
PLANET SOUND
This program is a journey through the rich gamut of sound
captured by five distinct composers from distant parts of the
world. Based on the Indian view of the four seasons, John Cage’s
String Quartet in Four Parts conveys tranquility and the experi-
ence of the nine permanent emotions of the Rasa aesthetic. Chaya
Czernowin’s visceral, wild String Quartet is a rollercoaster-ride of
extreme emotions and blasting energy. Toshio Hosokawa’s quartet
Silent Flowers is a testament to his compositional aesthetic, influ-
enced decisively by his relationship to nature; as he says, “I have
always wished to compose works which might become part of the
sounds of nature, the sound of the cosmos.” The exquisite and
virtuosic Figura II Frammento per Quartetto D’Archi by Matthias
Pintscher showcases the composer’s extensive knowledge of ex-
tended techniques and sonorities for string instruments. Bold and
expressive, Chang Music IV by Yanov Yanovsky instantly teleports
the listener to Central Asia through the use of imaginative tone
shaping and percussive effects.
Works to be performed on the “Planet Sound” program include:
Chaya Czernowin, String Quartet
Matthias Pintscher, Figura II Frammento per
Quartetto D’Archi
John Cage, String Quartet in Four Parts
Toshio Hosokawa, Silent Flowers
Yanov Yanovsky, Chang Music IV
TESLA’S FAVORITES
This program brings together some of Tesla’s
personal favorites by juxtaposing a variety of
styles and moods. The charming and witty
Haydn quartet that opens the program was
composed in 1788 for the violinist Johann
Tost, a popular Esterhazy court musician. Here,
as ever, Haydn is able to evoke in the same
gesture both the cultivated atmosphere of an
aristocratic court and the boozy delirium of a
barnyard contradance. Janáček’s String Quar-
tet No. 1, inspired by Tolstoy’s The Kreutzer Sonata, was composed
quickly in 1923 and displays the composer’s adventurous palette
and vivid brush strokes. Unlike the Haydn, Kreutzer is a completely
programmatic work, meant to convey the main narrative elements
of Tolstoy’s novella in musical form: from the pangs of jealousy of
Tolstoy’s main character, Pozdnyshev, to the brutal murder of his
wife, to the rumbling train Pozdnyshev rides in seeking repentance.
The final piece on the program, from 1875, is the last of Brahms’s
three surviving quartets. Like other chamber music works by
Brahms that are in a major key, the B-flat quartet conveys a light-
hearted sentiment (a fitting foil to the tempestuous Janáček) while
maintaining a noble air. However, the gaiety of the facade belies a
rich tapestry of ideas and compositional feats that lend this quartet
its depth of character.
Works to be performed on the “Tesla’s Favorites”
program include:
Haydn, String Quartet in C major, Op. 54, No. 2
Janáček, String Quartet No. 1 “The Kreutzer Sonata”
Brahms, String Quartet No. 3 in B flat major, Op. 67
P H O T O B Y A RT H U R M O E L L E R
TESLA QUARTET string quartet
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ARTISTSAriel
MASTER CLASS AND CHAMBER MUSIC COACHING
The Tesla Quartet is delighted to share their knowledge through
teaching. A master class can last one to two hours, depending on
the number of groups involved, and Tesla will give ensembles the
opportunity to play a movement of their choice. Through detailed
attention to the score, the Tesla Quartet will help guide students in
discovering and highlighting the character of the music in addi-
tion to addressing more technical issues such as ensemble perfor-
mance, intonation, and balance. Members of the quartet can also
provide individual coaching to groups in a more private setting.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND EDUCATION
The Tesla Quartet is happy to offer community enrichment pro-
grams for a variety of audiences. Tesla has an extensive back-
ground bringing their music to schools, libraries, retirement and
assisted living centers, coffee shops, and even public transit ter-
minals. The quartet presents exciting and informative programs
that can be tailored to a particular venue or audience. Typical
programs include introducing the instruments and classical mu-
sic to young children, storytelling through music, and lecture/
performances on specific repertoire. Through these programs,
the Tesla Quartet aims not only to educate, but to excite the
creative potential of the listeners.
MEET THE TESLAS
The tradition of the string quartet is rooted in conversation,
and the Tesla Quartet is pleased to be able to continue that
dialogue beyond the stage. Possible formats for more personal
interaction include an informal post-concert Q&A or a meet-
and-greet in the lobby. Topics for discussion could address
Tesla’s concert repertoire and programming, group dynamics,
and their interpretive process.
additional offerings
P H O T O B Y A RT H U R M O E L L E R