Jerzy Kaplanek violin, Jeremy Bell violin, Christine Vlajk viola, Katie Schlaikjer cello, with guest pianist Ken Gee
Beethoven Quartet No. 8 in E minor, Op. 59, No. 2 (“Razumovsky”); Penderecki String Quartet No. 3, “Leaves of an Unwritten Diary” (2008); Dvořák Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major, Op. 81
Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the Penderecki String Quartet returns to Guelph Musicfest. The PSQ began its career as winner of the Penderecki Prize at the National Chamber Music Competition in Łódź, Poland in 1986. Now based in Waterloo, Ontario, where it has been Quartet-in-Residence at Wilfrid Laurier University since 1991, The Penderecki String Quartet has become one of the most celebrated chamber ensembles of their generation. The four Penderecki musicians (now originating from Poland, Canada, and the USA) bring their varied yet collective experience to create performances that demonstrate their “remarkable range of technical excellence and emotional sweep” (Toronto, Globe and Mail).
The PSQ’s international performing schedule has included appearances in New York (Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall), Amsterdam (Concertgebouw), Hong Kong (Academy for the Arts), Los Angeles (REDCAT Hall at Disney Center), St. Petersburg (Sheremetev Palace), the Adam Festival in New Zealand, and throughout Europe in Rome, Madrid, Paris, Belgrade, Prague, Krakow, Vilnius, and Zagreb. The PSQ has also toured extensively in Mexico, Australia, Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia, and across Canada.
Dedicated educators, the PSQ have been recent guests at Bloomington, Indiana University’s String Academy; the Beijing Conservatory; the University of Southern California (Los Angeles); the University of British Columbia in Vancouver; and at their partner universities in Osnabrück, Germany and Lyon, France.
To this day, the PSQ is a devoted champion of the music of our time, having premiered over 100 new works from composers in Canada and abroad. Penderecki Quartet’s large discography includes over three dozen recordings, including the chamber mus
Cost: $20 to $55 single & series tickets available