Cypress Quartet
Cypress String Quartet Announces 2009-2010 Bay Area Concerts
November 08, 2009
Nov. 8, Jan. 31, Feb. 28, Mar. 14 & Apr. 25:
Montalvo Arts Center Villa Chamber Music Series, Saratoga
Feb. 26: Call & Response 2010 featuring the world premiere of new work by composer Elena Ruehr
Herbst Theatre, San Francisco
New CD available: Beethoven Late Quartets, Vol. 1
Other Greater Bay Area performances: Dec. 13: The Crowden School, Berkeley; Jan. 10: San Jose Chamber Orchestra; Jan. 20: "Salons at the Rex," San Francisco; Feb. 13: Four Seasons Arts, Oakland; Feb. 14: Gualala Arts; April 17: Chamber Music Monterey Bay, Carmel; April 18: Mill Valley Chamber Music Society
In addition to tour concerts in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, and Pennsylvania
**Bay Area concert details included at the end of this press release.**
For more information and complete tour schedule: www.cypressquartet.com
San Francisco, CA – The Cypress String Quartet (Cecily Ward, violin; Tom Stone, violin; Ethan Filner, viola; and Jennifer Kloetzel, cello) will present a number of concerts in the greater Bay Area during the 2009-2010 concert season, in addition to maintaining a tour schedule that takes them to twelve other states. Known for their elegant performances, the Cypress Quartet's sound has been called "beautifully proportioned and powerful" by The Washington Post, and the ensemble has been singled out by Chamber Music Magazine as, "a Generation X ensemble to watch."
A highlight of this season will be the Quartet's 11th Annual Call & Response concert on February 26, 2010 at Herbst Theatre in San Francisco. The ensemble's Call & Response commissioning and outreach program creates a dialogue between the old masters and living composers, performing known and loved repertoire in a fresh context and introducing ground-breaking new works to the chamber music genre. Over just a decade, the Cypress String Quartet has commissioned and premiered more than 25 new works, four of which are now included on Chamber Music America's list of 101 Great American Ensemble Works. In 2010, the Cypress commissions Boston-area composer Elena Ruehr to write a new work in response to Ann Patchett's novel, Bel Canto. The concert coincides with the Quartet's commercial release of the world premiere recordings of Elena Ruehr's String Quartets Nos. 1, 3, and 4 (commissioned by the Cypress Quartet in 2005).
A mainstay in the Cypress Quartet's Bay Area concert season will again be their original Salon Series as part of the Montalvo Arts Center's Villa Chamber Music Series in Saratoga, which they return to present for the third consecutive year. The theme of this year's five-concert series is "Expressions of Love and Longing," and it features music by Dvorak and Schubert, plus Elena Ruehr's new quartet based on Ann Patchett's novel, Bel Canto. The Series uses a unique concert format that demystifies classical music. Rather than a traditional concert consisting of three works with an intermission, the Salon Series features one work per concert that is discussed in depth and then performed. Violinist Tom Stone explains, "We contextualize the featured piece through musical examples and dialogue, and then we perform the piece in its entirety. We hope the audience develops an intimate relationship with the selected piece, as well as with us through the insight into the creative process that we share." Salon Series concerts are on Sundays at 3pm on November 8, 2009; January 31, 2010; February 28, March 14 and April 25.
Additional Bay Area concerts will include performances at The Crowden School, Berkeley (December 13, 2009); San Jose Chamber Orchestra (January 10, 2010); "Salons at the Rex" presented by San Francisco Performances (January 20); Four Seasons Arts, Oakland (February 13); Gualala Arts (February 14); Chamber Music Monterey Bay, Carmel (April 17); and Mill Valley Chamber Music Society (April 18). (For complete program information, please see the end of this press release.)
In August 2009, the Cypress released a recording of Beethoven's Late Quartets Op. 131 and 135 to critical acclaim. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported, "the Cypress players converse with such rare sincerity as to make long-familiar music sound utterly fresh." Audiophile Audition raved, "We can hear the plangent, rocking sequences that will provide much of the Lento assai's main theme. The inevitable Beethoven obsessions come forth in the Vivace, whose obstinate and furious whirling eddies convey a raucous, almost uncouth power. . . The Cypress appears to revel in the singular disposition of Beethoven's harmonies, the psychic mid-wifery, as each progression yields to the inevitable revelation of melody that ushers forth from the violin part over a throbbing or groaning bass." The recording is the first of a three volume set. Volumes two and three will be released in 2010 and 2011. (Review copies of Vol. 1 are available upon request.)
About the Cypress Quartet: The Cypress String Quartet formed in 1996 in San Francisco and during its first rehearsals together created a now-signature sound through intense readings of J.S. Bach's Chorales. Built up from the bottom register of the quartet and layered like a pyramid, the resulting sound is clear and transparent, allowing the texture of the music to be discerned immediately.
The Cypress String Quartet's unusual approach to their career is informed by their fierce dedication to the ensemble. Violinists Cecily Ward and Tom Stone were studying in San Francisco when they held auditions for violists and cellists. Jennifer Kloetzel and Ethan Filner were chosen, relocated to San Francisco to play with the group, and the foursome made a commitment to each other to only perform as a quartet (meaning that they would not take on teaching or freelance jobs as orchestral members or with other chamber ensembles). They realized early on that they needed to create their own performance opportunities and organized as a non-profit – the Cypress Performing Arts Association – rather than signing with a management agency. Eventually, they hired a small administrative staff.
This independent spirit is evident in their music as well. Cecily Ward explains, "We found our common ground in the music. Because we had not all gone to school together and had no common past or anyone shepherding us along, we were forced to find out who we are as an ensemble on our own – both in how we made a career and in how we create our sound."
Now, on top of a busy schedule of over 90 concerts each year at venues across the US and internationally, including major concert halls and series such as the Kennedy Center, Library of Congress, Stanford Lively Arts, Krannert Center and Ravinia Festival, the Cypress String Quartet is a vibrant member of the San Francisco arts community and is dedicated to reflecting and enriching the city's cultural landscape. During the 2008-2009 season, in addition to several Bay Area performances including a debut on the Cal Performances series in Berkeley, the Cypress returned to the Montalvo Arts Center for a series of concerts exploring the Late quartets of Beethoven and the inspirational influence of visual arts on composers from Debussy to George Tsontakis.
The Cypress Quartet members trained individually at institutions including The Juilliard School, Interlochen Arts Academy, Cleveland Institute of Music, Guildhall School of Music & Drama and the Royal College of Music. They play exceptional instruments, including violins by Antonio Stradivarius (1681) and Carlos Bergonzi (1733), a viola by Vittorio Bellarosa (1947), and a cello by Hieronymus Amati II (1701). The Cypress Quartet takes its name from the set of twelve love songs for string quartet, The Cypresses, by Antonin Dvoák. For more information and the Cypress Quartet's most up to date concert schedule, visit www.cypressquartet.com.
Cypress String Quartet Greater Bay Area Concert Schedule for the 2009-2010 Concert Season:
Sunday, November 8, 2009 at 3pm
Montalvo Arts Center: Villa Chamber Music Series (15400 Montalvo Rd., Saratoga, CA)
Program: Dvorak's "American" Quartet Op. 96
Tickets: $20-30 at http://montalvoarts.org/events/cypress_nov8/ or 408.961.5858
Sunday, December 13, 2009 at 4pm
Crowden Music Center (1475 Rose Street at Sacramento, Berkeley, CA)
Program: Barber's String Quartet in B Minor, Op. 11; Jennifer Higdon's Impressions; Debussy's String Quartet in F Major, Op. 135
Tickets: $12 at www.crowden.org/Events/sundays.htm or 510.559.6910
Sunday, January 10, 2009 at 7pm
Le Pitit Trianon Theater (72 North 5th Street, San Jose, CA)
Program: Beethoven's String Quartet in F Major, Op.135; Pablo Furman's commissioned piece for String Quartet and Chamber Orchestra with the San Jose Chamber Orchestra
Tickets: $10-45 at www.sjcotickets.org or 408.295.4416
Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at 6:30pm
San Francisco Performances: Salon at the Rex (562 Sutter St., San Francisco, CA)
Program: "Cypress Favorites"
Tickets: $20 at http://performances.org/performances/0910/CypressQuartet.html or 415.392.2545
Sunday, January 31, 2010 at 3pm
Montalvo Arts Center: Villa Chamber Music Series (15400 Montalvo Rd., Saratoga, CA)
Program: Dvorak's String Quartet No. 13, Op. 106
Tickets: $20-30 at http://montalvoarts.org/events/cypress_jan31/ or 408.961.5858
Saturday, February 13, 2010 at 7:30pm
Four Season Arts: Regents' Theatre at Valley Center for Performing Arts (Holy Names University, 3500 Mountain Boulevard Oakland, CA)
Program: Haydn's String Quartet, Op. 33, No. 3; Barber's String Quartet in B Minor, Op. 11; Schubert's String Quartet No. 14 in D Minor, "Death and the Maiden"
Tickets: By subscription only at www.fourseasonsconcerts.com/index.html or 510. 845.4444
Sunday, February 14, 2010 at 7:30pm
Gualala Arts Center (46501 Gualala Road, Gualala, CA)
Program: Haydn's String Quartet, Op. 33, No. 3; Barber's String Quartet in B Minor, Op. 11; Schubert's String Quartet No. 14 in D Minor, "Death and the Maiden"
Tickets: $20-25 at www.gualalaarts.org/tickets/index.html or 707. 884.1138
Friday, February 26, 2010 at 8pm
Herbst Theatre: San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center (401 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, CA)
Program: Mozart's String Quartet in D Major, K.575; Elena Ruehr's String Quartet No. 5, Bel Canto (world premiere); Schubert's String Quartet No. 14 in D Minor, "Death and the Maiden"
Tickets: $TBA at http://sfwmpac.org/herbst/ht_index.html or 415.392.4400
Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 3pm
Montalvo Arts Center: Villa Chamber Music Series (15400 Montalvo Rd., Saratoga, CA)
Program: Elena Ruehr's String Quartet No. 5, Bel Canto
Tickets: $20-30 at http://montalvoarts.org/events/cypress_feb28/ or 408.961.5858
Sunday, March 14, 2010 at 3pm
Montalvo Arts Center: Villa Chamber Music Series (15400 Montalvo Rd., Saratoga, CA)
Program: Schubert's String Quartet No. 14 in D Minor, "Death and the Maiden"
Tickets: $20-30 at http://montalvoarts.org/events/cypress_mar13/ or 408.961.5858
Saturday, April 17, 2010 at 8pm
Chamber Music Monterey Bay: Sunset Center (San Carlos at Ninth, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA)
Program: Mendelssohn's String Quartet in A Minor, Op. 13; Kevin Puts' Lento Assai; Beethoven's String Quartet in F Major, Op.135
Tickets: $TBA at www.chambermusicmontereybay.org/2009/cypress_sq.php or 831.625.2212
Sunday, April 18, 2010 at 5pm
Mill Valley Chamber Music Society (Mt. Tamalpais United Methodist Church, 410 Sycamore Ave., Mill Valley, CA)
Program: Mendelssohn's String Quartet in A Minor, Op. 13; Kevin Puts' Lento Assai; Beethoven's String Quartet in F Major, Op.135
Tickets: $25at www.chambermusicmillvalley.org/ or 415.381.4453
Sunday, April 25, 2010 at 3pm
Montalvo Arts Center: Villa Chamber Music Series (15400 Montalvo Rd., Saratoga, CA)
Program: Schubert's Cello Quintet
Tickets: $20-30 at http://montalvoarts.org/events/cypress_apr25/ or 408.961.5858
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