The Quartet
KONTRAS QUARTET explores the role of chamber music in the new millennium, at once keeping classic tradition and style alive while embracing new opportunities and fusing genres to expand the art form and include a more diverse audience. Formed in 2009, the "superb Chicago-based ensemble" (Gramophone Magazine) has become known for its vibrant and nuanced performances, “crisp precision" (Palm Beach Daily News), "superlative artistry" (CVNC Arts Journal), and unique penchant for exploring the folk roots of classical music. Kontras’s "enjoyable musical personality" (Fanfare Magazine) and welcoming, friendly approach to the recital stage have attracted audiences near and far for over a decade. Kontras means ‘contrasts’ in the Afrikaans language - fitting for a string ensemble whose colorful repertoire spans centuries, genres, and continents.
Kontras Quartet's recent engagements include international tours of South Africa and Switzerland, broadcasts on classical radio stations nationwide (including Performance Today and a 3-month residency with Chicago's WFMT 98.7 fm), performances at Chicago's Symphony Center and the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., and television appearances on NBC and PBS. Kontras served as Artists in Residence with San Diego’s Art of Elan from 2018-2021, commissioning and premiering multiple new works, and collaborating with numerous artists including Malashock Dance and Branford Marsalis.
Kontras Quartet has released three critically acclaimed albums with two more slated to be released in 2023. The first, Origins, on MSR classics, was commended by Gramophone Magazine for the quartet's "scrupulous shading and control". The second, Lucid Dreamer, a 2013 Chamber Music America commission, treads the line between classical music and American folk and invigorates Kontras' ongoing collaboration with the esteemed Kruger Brothers trio, as does their 2017 release, the Roan Mountain Suite. Upcoming plans for Kontras and Kruger Brothers include a fall 2023 tour of Switzerland, and an album release of their latest septet, The Moonshine Sonata, on DoubleTime Records.
All four Kontras members are passionate music educators. In addition to holding faculty positions at Elmhurst University, Kontras served as Quartet in Residence at Western Michigan University from 2014 through 2020 and held short-term teaching residencies at University of California San Diego, University of Chicago, and others. In 2016, the quartet received a grant from the Boeing Company to perform a series of outreach programs to thousands of students across the Chicagoland area.
Kontras Quartet gained early acclaim during a four-year chamber music residency with the Western Piedmont Symphony established through Chamber Music America's Residency Partnership Program. While in North Carolina, the quartet made a significant community impact in the Hickory metro area with their innovative and interactive programming, performing for over 40,000 school-age and college students in addition to their popular recital series.
Kontras Quartet’s early mentors included the Vermeer and Juilliard Quartets.
Eleanor Bartsch
![](http://d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/s:bzglfiles/u/318858/ada162a95eb9538907ff10bb83871ae8ee0070d5/original/untitled-design.png/!!/b%3AW1sicmVzaXplIiwzMzBdLFsibWF4Il0sWyJ3ZSJdXQ%3D%3D/meta%3AeyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ%3D%3D.png)
Praised for her “clarion tone and technical aplomb” (Chicago Classical Review), Eleanor Bartsch joined the Chicago Lyric Opera Orchestra’s first violin section in 2024. Bartsch is also first violinist of the Chicago-based Kontras Quartet with whom she has toured the US and Europe, recorded two albums, made frequent appearances live on classical WFMT Chicago 98.7 and held residencies at multiple US higher learning institutions. She is a performing member and frequent principal player of the Chicago Philharmonic where she also serves on the board of directors.
Prior to her appointment at Lyric, Bartsch was concertmaster of the Dubuque Symphony from 2016-2023 and associate concertmaster of the Elgin Symphony since 2015. She has additionally led the Chicago Philharmonic, Joffrey Ballet Orchestra, Chicago Opera Theater Orchestra and many others. She has appeared as a regular guest with the Minnesota Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Grant Park Orchestra, Music of the Baroque and the Knights. As a soloist, she has performed with many regional Midwest orchestras including the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Dubuque Symphony, Elgin Symphony, Chicago Philharmonic and others.
A passionate educator and ambassador of music, Bartsch is Professor of Violin and Head of Strings at Elmhurst University. She has additionally taught hundreds of music learners of all ages as a private instructor, chamber and orchestral coach, masterclass clinician, pre-concert lecturer and through participation in many meaningful community engagement initiatives.
Bartsch co-founded Madison, Wisconsin’s Willy Street Chamber Players, an award-winning ensemble and summer festival with an emphasis on creating community through classical music. She is a frequent guest with chamber ensembles, series and festivals nationwide.
Born into a family of professional musicians and music educators, Bartsch began violin lessons at the age of 4 in her hometown of St. Paul, MN. She received her master’s degrees in violin performance with a graduate certificate in business entrepreneurship from the University of Wisconsin-Madison studying violin with David Perry as a Paul Collins Distinguished Graduate Fellow. Bartsch also received her bachelor’s degree from UW-Madison with Perry. During that time, she spent summers studying with Paul Kantor at the Aspen Music Festival and won tenured positions with the Madison Symphony and Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra. Her previous teachers were Ellen Kim and Young-Nam Kim.
Francois Henkins
![](http://d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/s:bzglfiles/u/318858/be72aa8a804b5fcc542fdc19d3e7d04fec2d6334/original/francois-1.jpg/!!/b%3AW1sicmVzaXplIiwzMzBdLFsibWF4Il0sWyJ3ZSJdXQ%3D%3D/meta%3AeyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ%3D%3D.jpg)
Having grown up in a highly musical family, violinist Francois Henkins distinguished himself at an early age by winning national chamber music and solo competitions in his native South Africa, and performing as guest soloist with the Johannesburg and Free State Symphonies. He came to the USA with a full scholarship to the Interlochen Arts Academy, and continued his studies under Chicago Symphony Orchestra concertmaster Robert Chen, Los Angeles Philharmonic associate concertmaster Nathan Cole, and Renata Artman Knific. Francois has since traveled the world to appear at chamber music festivals such as the Musicorda Chamber Music Festival; the Stellenbosch National Chamber Music Competition, at which he was awarded a prize for his notable performance; and the Cleveland Orchestra's Kent/Blossom Music Festival, where he was awarded the Josef Gingold Award for his distinguished performance in chamber music. An experienced orchestral performer, Francois has worked under renowned conductors such as Bernard Haitink and Pierre Boulez in the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the Chicago Sinfonietta, and the Johannesburg Philharmonic. Francois has a deep love of teaching and is currently Adjunct Professor at Elmhurst University.
Ben Weber
![](http://d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/s:bzglfiles/u/318858/bd8004d6affa658f9ddff06fbe7d49e71192897d/original/ben-2.jpg/!!/b%3AW1sicmVzaXplIiwzMzBdLFsibWF4Il0sWyJ3ZSJdXQ%3D%3D/meta%3AeyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ%3D%3D.jpg)
Violist Benjamin Weber is currently Principal Viola with the Rockford Symphony Orchestra and has performed with many of the orchestras around the Chicago area. He has performed recently with Barbra Streisand, Todd Rundgren, and Howard Levy. An avid chamber musician, he was a founding member of Crossing Borders Music and has often appeared with the ACM Palomar Ensemble as a guest. As a string educator, he is on the faculty at the Merit School of Music and has led guest clinics at high schools around the Chicago area. He received a Bachelor’s in Music Education from Illinois Wesleyan University in 2004 studying Violin and Viola with Michael Hining, and in 2008 he received a Master’s degree in Viola Performance from the Eastman School of Music where he studied with John Graham and Melissa Matson. He and his wife are proud parents of their young daughter, Mara.
Jean Hatmaker
![](http://d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/s:bzglfiles/u/318858/591a45df432cbd54d3f52dffda0904a37c105649/original/hatmaker-headshot-3.jpg/!!/b%3AW1sicmVzaXplIiwzMzBdLFsibWF4Il0sWyJ3ZSJdXQ%3D%3D/meta%3AeyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ%3D%3D.jpg)
Known for her soulful, expressive playing style, cellist Jean Hatmaker is one of the most versatile musicians in the Chicago area with a diverse portfolio of solo and collaborative projects across a wide range of musical and interdisciplinary settings. Her engaging and intuitive demeanor has made her a sought-after collaborator, from the Bach Cantata Vespers Series at Grace Lutheran Church of River Forest, IL and various classical chamber and orchestral ensembles, to performances with contemporary and folk musicians, and dance companies all across the country such as Hubbard Street Dance, Malashock Dance Company and Boulder Ballet.
Jean is a founding member of the Chicago-based Kontras Quartet, a beloved ensemble known for its well-crafted performances, diverse programming, and accessible audience relations. Kontras Quartet has brought its message of inclusivity to concerts across the US, Europe, and Africa, and frequently performs with bluegrass trio the Kruger Brothers, with whom they have appeared at festivals including Telluride, MerleFest, and IBMA Wide Open Bluegrass, as well as the Late Show with David Letterman. Kontras Quartet has released three commercial albums: Lucid Dreamer and Roan Mountain Suite with the Kruger Brothers, on Double Time Records; and Origins, on MSR Records.
Jean has an extensive background of orchestral playing as former principal cellist of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Western Piedmont Symphony, and other regional orchestras throughout the Midwest; she is currently principal cellist with Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra, and also plays with the Chicago Philharmonic, Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra, and Madison Symphony Orchestra.
One of Jean’s main aspirations as a musician is to use music to connect with people; she inspires future generations of musicians as a teacher at Grace Lutheran School of River Forest, as well as at her private studio in her home in Oak Park. She was faculty at Elmhurst University from 2013-2023 and frequently teaches as a guest clinician at schools all across the country. She recognizes the responsibility of her role as a mental wellness advocate in the lives of her students, and often works with youth in challenging circumstances to use the performing arts as a tool for coping and growth. She holds a certification in Mental Health First Aid.
She received both Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in Cello Performance from Indiana University, where she studied with Helga Winold and Janos Starker, and plays a modern cello by Lawrence Wilke, using Hill, Bearden, and Arcus bows.
www.jeanhatmaker.com
follow on Instagram: @cellogenie84