Friday / 5 Oct 2007 / 7:30 p.m.

Academy of St. Martin in the Fields
Chamber Ensemble
Kenneth Sillito, leader

Dvorák: Sextet in A major, op. 48
Shostakovich: Two Pieces for Octet, op. 11
Mendelssohn: Octet, op. 20

The Chamber Ensemble, a vigorous offshoot of its venerable parent, was formed in 1967 to perform larger chamber works, from quintets to octets. Led by violinist Kenneth Sillito, these eight principals from the Chamber Orchestra form an ensemble unrivaled for cohesiveness and balance. They combine an intellectual understanding of the music, with exceptional technique and impassioned performance. Watching the exchanges between these long-standing partners gives new meaning to the phrase “music among friends.”

Friday / 19 Oct 2007 / 7:30 p.m.

Brentano String Quartet
Susan Narucki, soprano

J.S. Bach: Last Contrapunctus from
Art of the Fugue
Schoenberg: Quartet No. 2
Beethoven: Quartet in E-flat major, op. 127

Named for Beethoven’s “Immortal Beloved,” The Brentano Quartet brims with the passion and excitement befitting its muse. In its fourth visit to Mandel Hall, the Brentano brings an audacious program spanning the repertoire from Bach’s last contrapunctus, through Beethoven’s Opus 127 Quartet, to the rarely heard Schoenberg second quartet with soprano Susan Narucki. “I feel a wind from other planets,” begins the fourth movement of the Schoenberg, a motto that might also describe this “out of this world” ensemble.

Friday / 9 Nov 2007 / 7:30 p.m.

Jennifer Koh, violin
Reiko Uchida, piano

Mozart: Violin Sonata in F major, K. 377
Higdon: String Poetic
Zorn: Goetia for solo violin
Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D minor, op. 121

Jennifer Koh shuns the label virtuosa, even though it fits the dazzling violinist who won the Tchaikovsky competition at 17 to a tee. After completing a degree in English from Oberlin, the Chicago native continued her studies at the Curtis Institute with Jaime Laredo and Felix Galimir. Her lively intellect informs her playing and her programming, like the disc of Slavic-influenced concertos she recording after reading Czech novelist Milan Kundera. She and pianist Reiko Uchida will play a sonata by Koh's former teacher, Jennifer Higdon, who characterized her pupil as "an impeccable musician."

Friday / 15 Feb 2008 / 7:30 p.m.

Alice Coote, mezzo-soprano
Julius Drake, piano
CHICAGO RECITAL DEBUT

Schubert: Winterreise, op. 89, D. 911

Five-year-old Alice Coote heard Jessye Norman sing and was instantly smitten. The aspiring vocal artist found her way first to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and then to the studio of German mezzo-soprano Brigitte Fassbaender. But it was a near-fatal auto accident that convinced Coote that singing was her calling. Now the mezzo wears her "pants roles" with power and distinction. Hear one of Britain's brightest stars when Alice Coote and Julius Drake present Schubert's song cycle based on Wilhelm Müller's 24-poem collection.

Pre-concert conversation with pianist Julius Drake, hosted by University of Chicago music historian Berthold Hoeckner at 6:30 pm. Sponsored by the Nicholson Center for British Studies.

Alban Berg Quartet
Günter Pichler, violin
Gerhard Schulz, violin
Isabel Charisius, viola
Valentin Erben, cello
FAREWELL TOUR

Haydn: Selections from The Seven Last
Words of Christ
Berg: Lyric Suite
Schubert: Quartet in G major, op. 161, D. 887

For over thirty years, the Alban Berg Quartet has reigned supreme as one of the legendary quartets of the Classical world. The founding members chose their name to honor a fellow Viennese composer who bridged the gap between Romanticism and Modernism. Their mastery of the German-Viennese canon has earned them their own concert series in six European musical capitals, including Vienna. This will be a final opportunity to hear what the critics have called  “one of the great ensembles of our time.”

Belcea Quartet
CHICAGO RECITAL DEBUT

Haydn: Quartet in D major, op. 20, no. 4
Britten: Quartet No. 3, op. 94
Britten: Quartet No. 2 in C major, op. 36

The Belcea Quartet's star has continued to rise since it first burst into flame in 1994. Mentored by both the Chilingirian and Alban Berg quartets, the ensemble has twice won the Royal Philharmonic Society Award for Chamber Music, a Gramophone Award for best debut recording, and France's Diapason d'Or. Critics say the group has "technique to burn," but also elegance, maturity, and creativity beyond its years. Fresh from five years of residency at London's Wigmore Hall, the dazzling Brits are ready to light up Chicago in their local debut.