RESIDENCY WITH SAN DIEGO'S ART OF ELAN
01/24/2019
We are thrilled to announce our partnership with the San Diego-based Art of Elan series as their third Ensemble-in-Residence. The Ensemble-in-Residence program is an opportunity for this innovative classical music organization to establish a two-year partnership with groups whose mission and projects align with the mission of Art of Élan. The residency includes performance opportunities, commissioning opportunities, and possible recording support.
The Kontras Quartet first came to San Diego in April of 2018 to perform with legendary jazz musician Branford Marsalis on an Art of Élan concert at The Music Box, which featured the world premiere of a commissioned work written by Dan Visconti.
In its new role as Ensemble-in-Residence for 2018 - 2020, KQ will return to San Diego twice to perform at the San Diego Museum of Art (February 22) and with Malashock Dance at the Lyceum Theatre (May 31-June 2) for their presentation of High Strung. They will also aid in Art of Élan's newly established Community Engagement projects at the Centro de Artes Musicales in Tijuana.
Art of Élan is supported by the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture, the County of San Diego, the California Arts Council, the Clare Rose Foundation, the generosity of numerous individual donors and board members, and Art of Élan's Luminaria Circle, which supports the commissioning of new works.
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THE KQ FAMILY GROWS
09/01/2018
Since our founding in 2009, first violinist Dmitri Pogorelov has inspired us with his passionate artistry, his warm heart, his poise and grace, both onstage and off. After nine years of devoted commitment to the KQ cause, the time has come for him to enter a new chapter in his career. Although we will all miss Dmitri dearly as he transitions from quartet to orchestra, we are excited to welcome a new voice to the KQ sound and family, one that belongs to Eleanor Bartsch!
Violinist Eleanor Bartsch is an active orchestral and chamber musician based in Chicago. She is currently Concertmaster of the Dubuque Symphony Orchestra, Associate Concertmaster of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, and a performing member of the Chicago Philharmonic / Joffrey Ballet Orchestra where she frequently serves as Concertmaster, Associate Concertmaster, and Principal Second Violin. Ms. Bartsch also performs regularly with the Ravinia Festival Orchestra, the Grant Park Festival Orchestra, the Milwaukee, Nashville and Cincinnati Symphonies, and the Minnesota Orchestra.
As a founding member of Madison's Willy Street Chamber Players, Eleanor maintains a passion for chamber music and community. She is also a member of The Chicago Ensemble, the Elgin-based Apas Piano Trio, and has appeared recently with both the Grammy-nominated Spektral Quartet and multiple Grammy award-winning ensemble Eighth Blackbird.
Eleanor holds Bachelors and Masters Degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she was a Paul Collins Distinguished Graduate Fellow and studied with David Perry and Felicia Moye. During her studies she was a member of the Madison Symphony and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra.
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KQ & BRANFORD MARSALIS PREMIERE NEW QUINTET
04/03/2018
On April 8, a one-night only special presentation of “Highways & Byways” will feature a lineup including a world premiere by acclaimed young Chicago composer Dan Visconti, the Chicago-based Kontras Quartet, and legendary jazz artist Branford Marsalis, at Music Box, the premiere concert venue in downtown San Diego.
The show will include the world premiere of “Beg, Borrow or Steal,” composer Dan Visconti's quintet for string quartet and saxophone, which Kontras and Art of Élan co-commissioned. This special collaborative concert includes pieces that are rooted in various folk traditions, tying together the old and new, the familiar and less-traveled, the classical and jazz/blues traditions.
- Erwin Schulhoff - Duo for Violin & Cello
- Heitor Villa-Lobos - Assobio a Jato ("The Jet Whistle") for Flute & Cello
- Dan Visconti - Black Bend
- Osvaldo Golijov - Tenebrae
- Dan Visconti - Beg, Borrow or Steal
- Adolph Busch - Quintet for Alto Saxophone & String Quartet
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