Jupiter Quartet makes Chamber Music Northwest Debut in July

On Saturday, July 3, 2021 at 7:30pm PT & Sunday, July 4, 2021 at 4pm PT, Chamber Music Northwest (CMNW) presents a collaboration between the Jupiter String Quartet and East Coast Chamber Orchestra (ECCO), highlighting the quartet in a performance of Jessie Montgomery's Banner for quartet and orchestra. The performances on July 3 and 4 will take place in person at Reed College's Kaul Auditorium (3203 SE Woodstock Blvd). These live festival concerts will be professionally recorded and streamed online beginning two weeks later, on Saturday, July 17, 2021 at 7:30pm PT, as part of CMNW's AT-HOME Series, remaining online for ticket holders until August 31, 2021.

In addition to the Montgomery, ECCO will perform Barber's Adagio from the String Quartet in B Minor, Op. 11; Elgar's Serenade for Strings in E Minor, Op. 20; Hanna Benn's Where Springs Not Fail; Bartók's Divertimento for String Orchestra, Sz.113. "Three of the Jupiters are founding members of ECCO, so getting to play together at CMNW will be a happy reunion between musicians that have known each other for more than two decades," says Jupiter Quartet's violist Liz Freivogel. "It will be a joyful and celebratory way to kickstart a return to live performances."

Preceding these performances, the Jupiter Quartet will perform as members of ECCO on July 1 and 2, 2021, opening CMNW's 2021 festival with performances of Bach's Cantata 180: "Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele", BWV 180; Mendelssohn's; Concerto for Piano, Violin, and Strings in D minor, MWV O4; and Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings in C Major, Op. 48. Full festival concert dates and repertoire are available here: https://cmnw.org/concerts-tickets/all-concerts-events.

About the Jupiter String Quartet: The Jupiter is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Nelson Lee and Meg Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (Meg's older sister), and cellist Daniel McDonough (Meg's husband, Liz's brother-in-law). Now enjoying their 19th year together, this tight-knit ensemble is firmly established as an important voice in the world of chamber music. The New Yorker writes, "The Jupiter String Quartet, an ensemble of eloquent intensity, has matured into one of the mainstays of the American chamber-music scene."

The Jupiter has performed in some of the world's finest halls, including New York City's Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, London's Wigmore Hall, Boston's Jordan Hall, Mexico City's Palacio de Bellas Artes, Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center and Library of Congress, Austria's Esterhazy Palace, and Seoul's Sejong Chamber Hall. Their major music festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival and School, Bowdoin Music Festival, Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival, Rockport Music Festival, the Banff Centre, Virginia Arts Festival, Music at Menlo, Maverick Concerts, Caramoor International Music Festival, Lanaudiere Festival, West Cork (Ireland) Chamber Music Festival, Skaneateles Festival, Madeline Island Music Festival, Yellow Barn Festival, Encore Chamber Music Festival, the inaugural Chamber Music Athens, and the Seoul Spring Festival, among others. In addition to their performing career, they have been artists-in-residence at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana since 2012, where they maintain private studios and direct the chamber music program.

Their chamber music honors and awards include the grand prizes in the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition; the Young Concert Artists International auditions in New York City; the Cleveland Quartet Award from Chamber Music America; an Avery Fisher Career Grant; and a grant from the Fromm Foundation. From 2007-2010, they were in residence at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's Chamber Music Two.

The Jupiter String Quartet feels a particular connection to the core string quartet repertoire; they have presented the complete Bartok and Beethoven string quartets on numerous occasions. Also strongly committed to new music, they have commissioned works by Syd Hodkinson, Hannah Lash, Dan Visconti, Mark Adamo, Pierre Jalbert, and Kati Agócs.

The quartet's latest album a collaborative recording with the Jasper String Quartet, was released in February 2021 on Marquis Classics. It features the world premiere of Dan Visconti's Eternal Breath along with Osvaldo Golijov's Last Round and Mendelssohn's Octet in E-flat, Op. 20. Their recent album, Metamorphosis (Marquis Classics, 2020), includes Beethoven's Quartet Op. 131 and Ligeti's Quartet No. 1 "Métamorphoses nocturnes." Other recordings on Marquis include Alchemy with Australian pianist Bernadette Harvey (2019), Shostakovich & Britten (2007), and Mendelssohn & Beethoven (2009). The quartet's discography also includes releases on Azica Records and Deutsche Grammophon.

The Jupiters place a strong emphasis on developing relationships with future classical music audiences through educational performances in schools and other community centers. They believe that, because of the intensity of its interplay and communication, chamber music is one of the most effective ways of spreading an enthusiasm for "classical" music to new audiences. The quartet has also held numerous masterclasses for young musicians at Northwestern University, Eastman School of Music, the Aspen Music Festival, Encore Chamber Festival, Madeline Island Music Festival, and Peabody Conservatory.

The quartet chose its name because Jupiter was the most prominent planet in the night sky at the time of its formation and the astrological symbol for Jupiter resembles the number four. They are also proud to list among their accomplishments in recent years the addition of seven quartet children: Pablo, Lillian, Clara, Dominic, Felix, Oliver, and Joelle. You may spot some of these miniature Jupiters in the audience or tagging along to rehearsals, along with their grandparent babysitters. For more information, visit www.jupiterquartet.com.

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