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Celebrating its 75th anniversary this season, the Juilliard String Quartet remains at the nexus of continuity and change
The endurance of the Juilliard String Quartet (JSQ) seems to offer a potent antidote to the sense of impending disruption and uncertainty that has crept into just about every aspect of musical life. This longevity shines a beacon of hope, enhancing the sense of celebration around the internationally acclaimed ensemble's 75th anniversary this season.
Among the plans is a concert on November 30 at Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center titled "Cavatina," which presents a new commission series from the prolific German composer Jörg Widmann, whose work will interact with Beethovenian models. This will be juxtaposed with Beethoven's late String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat major. The ensemble will perform both finales the composer fashioned for Op. 130, including the Grosse Fuge originally intended as the capstone. This dual focus on core classic repertoire and new creation has consistently been part of the JSQ's DNA.
A reunion event with surviving former JSQ members took place in October, and in April the ensemble released its first album with newest member Areta Zhulla, who became first violinist in 2018. The recording combines Bartók's Third Quartet with the second of Beethoven's Op. 59 set ("Rasumovsky") and Dvořák's "American" Quartet (Sony). Sony Classical has additionally released seven CDs combining previously unreleased material with works chosen from the JSQ's discography of more than 100 recordings.
"One of the things we're looking forward to the most is simply performing again," says second violinist Ronald Copes in a joint Zoom interview with all four members over the summer. "I'm just hopeful to be working to some sort of new normal of playing concerts and sharing with people."
Core Vision
Even before the turn of the century, the fact that the JSQ was able to mark its 50th anniversary was hailed as a milestone-especially at a time when several other prominent quartets were disbanding. Critics used the occasion (during the 1996-97 season) to take stock of the ensemble's enormous influence on quartet culture and its role as a champion of contemporary composers. Musical America named the JSQ "Musicians of the Year" in 1996, the first time a chamber ensemble was so honored by the...