MSM Presents the American String Quartet in Vivian Fung's String Quartet No. 4

On Friday, October 11, 2019 at 7:30pm, Manhattan School of Music presents Artists in Residence, the American String Quartet, in the New York premiere of JUNO Award-winning Canadian composer Vivian Fung's String Quartet No. 4, "Insects and Machines." The program also includes Haydn's String Quartet in B-flat Major, Op. 76, No. 4, "Sunrise" and Brahms' String Quintet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 111 featuring guest violist Danielle Farina.

Vivian Fung's String Quartet No. 4, "Insects and Machines," commissioned by the Red Bank Chamber Music Society in New Jersey, is inspired by the noises that permeate our daily lives. Fung says, "On a recent trip to Cambodia, I was especially attuned to the persistent noises of buzzing insects that accompanied my walk through the thick jungle, and this cacophony gelled with my emotional reaction to the terrible genocide of the Khmer people. I give voice to this background babbling in this quartet, organizing the various moments as episodes that freely morph from one event into another. One can hear buzzing at the beginning that turns into a waltz, which in turn transforms into a motoric adventure of machine-like chuggings-along. Much like the sound of thumping bass in a neighboring car, the episodes come in as waves and then disappear into the distance to be replaced by other soundscapes. The end result is an unrelenting fast and virtuosic 12-minute tour-de-force quartet." Listen to String Quartet No. 4 and see a preview of the score.

More Information: https://www.msmnyc.edu/performances/american-string-quartet/