The Miró Quartet to Perform At The Kennedy Center's Fortas Chamber Music Concerts

On Thursday, December 19, 2024 at 7:30pm at the Terrace Theater, The Kennedy Center will present the GRAMMY-nominated Miró Quartet as part of its Fortas Chamber Music Concerts series. The program centers around Caroline Shaw's work Microfictions [Volume 1], which was composed for Miró and performed by the quartet in its world premiere in 2021. The concert also features Beethoven's String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp minor and Haydn's String Quartet in G Major.

Miró Quartet shares, "Its evocative mixture of spoken text and instrumental sound inspires the listener to hear the images and feel the textures in the music. Framing this work on each side with Haydn and late Beethoven both puts Shaw's bold new style into context, as well as challenges the audience to hear these two more familiar voices in a deeper and more complex way."

Caroline Shaw's Microfictions [Volume 1], written in collaboration with the Miró Quartet by teleconference during the pandemic lockdowns, is a set of six miniature musical stories inspired by the paintings of the quartet's artist namesake, Joan Miró, and the short science fiction of T.R. Darling - the original "microfictions" referenced by the title. As the composer shares: "Each movement is brief but vivid, with a distinct sonic profile... one's interpretation of the stories and of the music can be varied - there is no one right way to connect the sounds or images or ideas. Rather I hope that the words create an environment for curious listening, and an invitation to imagination." The Quartet premiered Microfictions at Shriver Hall Concert Series in Baltimore in 2021. The work is also featured on Miró's new album Home, released on PENTATONE in May 2024. At only 30, Shaw became the youngest ever recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2013.

Celebrated as one of America's leading string quartets, Miró marks its 30th anniversary in 2025. In their three decades performing together, the ensemble has been featured on prestigious stages worldwide, earning accolades from critics and audiences alike. Based in Austin, TX, where they have built a thriving presence on the area's vibrant music scene, the quartet has shown a rare talent for engaging audiences of all backgrounds while cultivating the longstanding tradition of chamber music.

During their 30th anniversary season, the quartet also appears at the Clark Library in Los Angeles, Music@Menlo, Denver Friends of Chamber Music, Chamber Music Detroit, Chamber Music Sedona, Chamber Music Tulsa, String Theory at the Hunter and Hunter Museum of American Art, Music Toronto, International Classical Concerts, BIG ARTS, Blanco Performing Arts, Forbes Center for the Performing Arts and more. As part of their milestone season, the Miró Quartet will also be launching new collaborations with saxophonist and actor Steven Banks and bass-baritone Joseph Parrish.

Program Details

The Kennedy Center Presents Foster Chamber Music Concerts: Miró Quartet
Thursday, December 19, 2024 at 7:30pm
The Terrace Theater | Washington D.C.
Tickets: $57.50
Link: https://www.kennedy-center.org/whats-on/explore-by-genre/fortas/2024-2025/miro-quartet/

Program:
Joseph Haydn - String Quartet in G Major, Op. 77, No. 1
Caroline Shaw - Microfictions [Volume 1]
Ludwig van Beethoven - String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 131

Daniel Ching, violin
William Fedkenheuer, violin
John Largess, viola
Joshua Gindele, cello

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