The Kronos Quartet will perform a program that showcases the world premiere of "String Quartet #1" a Duke-commissioned composition by Grammy-winning composer Maria Schneider at 8 p.m. Saturday, April 10, in Page Auditorium. The concert is sponsored by Duke Performances.
Recently credited by The New York Times as having re-invented the idea of what a string quartet could be, the Kronos Quartet since its founding in 1973 has been one of the leading performers of contemporary classical and new musical performance. Kronos has released dozens of albums, toured the globe many times, and commissioned over 600 works by the finest composers working today, a list that includes Philip Glass, Steve Reich, John Adams, Terry Riley, and countless others.
The range of the Kronos appetite was highlighted in a series of six concerts which the Kronos curated and performed at Carnegie Hall as part of Carnegie's Perpective Series. The concerts included an all-Terry Riley evening, music from north of the Arctic Circle, and an evening featuring music composed for and around toys and modern technology.
Maria Schneider is one of the most celebrated jazz composers and bandleaders working today. Along with her Grammy award-winning album Concert in the Garden, Schneider won a Grammy for best instrumental composition in 2008. The quartet Schneider has composed for Kronos Quartet marks her first collaboration with the group.
This collaboration is made possible by Duke Performances on-going relationship with both Kronos Quartet and Schneider as well as Duke Performances' commitment to making Duke and Durham a leading, contributing cultural institution in the United States. Additional funding for the Schneider commission was provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.
This concert marks the first of two concerts to be held over the next two years, each of which will feature the world premiere of a work by a leading composer as performed by the Kronos Quartet. During the 2010/2011 season, Kronos will deliver the world premiere of a new quartet by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Steve Reich, commissioned by -- among others -- Duke Performances.
The Quartet and Schneider will both be in residence at Duke in advance of the performance; lectures, demonstrations, and other free and open to the public events will be offered during their stay.
Tickets are $42, $34 and $22. Duke students can purchase tickets for $5.
Full concert program below:
Ben Johnston: Amazing Grace John Zorn: Cat o' Nine Tails Terry Riley: One Earth, One People, One Love from Sun Rings Maria Schneider: String Quartet No. 1 - World Premiere - Commissioned by Duke Performances / Duke University Traditional (arr. Judith Berkson and Jacob Garchik): Ov Horachamim Ramallah Underground (arr. Jacob Garchik): Tashweesh Traditional (arr. Kronos, transc. Ljova): Tusen Tankar (A Thousand Thoughts) Aleksandra Vrebalov: -- hold me, neighbor, in this storm --