Escher String Quartet Draws Inspiration from the Classics

The Escher String Quartet dazzled a packed house on Friday, March 8 at the Kevin P. Mahaney ’84 Center for the Arts Concert Hall.  The group derives its name from the contemporary graphic artist M.C. Escher, inspired by his use of individual components working together to form a whole. The free concert, made possible by generous support from the Institute for Clinical Science and Art, certainly proved the quartet’s unique individual and collaborative abilities.

From the very first note, the audience was captivated, feeling the palpable energy radiating off the stage.  Four virtuosos passionately took their natural places as performers, demonstrating an excellent cohesiveness.  The perfect blend and balance was only augmented by the finely honed technique that each musician carefully demonstrated while playing.  Rich tones filled every corner of the wonderful acoustic space as the group utilized dynamics to their full advantage.  Each musician brought a different energy and personality to the performance, much to the delight of the audience.

First violinist Adam Barnett-Hart firmly planted his feet in a wide, almost athletic stance at the beginning of the concert and let his upper body take over.  Confident, energetic movements made his playing look easy, but the sound he willed out of his violin floated gracefully through the air.  Violist Pierre Lapointe made his playing into a sport, shifting his feet and changing position regularly, giving the perception that for him, playing the viola is a physical activity. Frankly, I’ve always thought that violas never sounded quite as nice as violins, but Lapointe proved me wrong.

Cellist Dana Johansen’s on-stage presence gave off an air of confidence and respect for his instrument, and he was fantastic to watch, head bobbing in time like a true virtuoso.  Second violinist Aaron Boyd perfectly added the interesting fourth layer, performing with a level of focus and intensity that allowed his violin to produce full, intricate sounds.  The Escher String Quartet gave a world class performance that the College was lucky to have.

The Escher String Quartet is already well known in classical music, having performed at some of the most prestigious venues in the world.  Besides performing at the Louvre, Kennedy Center and Alice Tully Hall, the quartet also completed a three-year residency as artists of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s “CMS Two” program and was the BBC’s New Generation Artists of 2010-2012.  In August of 2012, the Quartet gave their BBC Proms debut, and next year, they will tour in Europe and curate and perform in a series of concerts at Lincoln Center celebrating the 100th anniversary of composer Benjamin Britten’s birth.

Middlebury is fortunate to have a concert of this caliber, especially one available to the community for free.  The Institute for Clinical Art and Science and the Middlebury Performing Arts Series have a multi-year collaboration that allows for one or two high-profile string quartet concerts to be performed for audiences free of charge.

“We’ve been following the Escher’s career for a few years.,” said Middlebury Performing Arts Series Director Paul Nelson. “They are a highly regarded young, American quartet, and were offering a very lovely program, which includes a rarely heard work by Britten (Quartet No. 3 in D), whose centennial is being celebrated this year.”

The Performing Arts Series has been presenting the world’s brightest talent to the community for 93 years, bringing in artists who would not usually visit such a small community.  The series also has a particular interest in rising stars that can interact with the college community in meaningful ways.

“We try to organize residency activities with our visiting artists so that Middlebury students have a chance to intimately work with a world-renowned professional,” Associate Director of the Performing Arts Series Allison Carroll said. “Just yesterday, the Escher Quartet worked with one of Professor [of Music] Su Lian Tan’s chamber music ensembles.”

New this year to the society is the Performing Arts Series Society (PASS), a group open to students for free that allows the community to have a closer relationship with the artist and the series.  PASS presented a pre-concert talk about the music later performed by the Escher String Quartet concert, led by Music Professor Greg Vitercik.

The Performing Arts Series is presenting “The Opulence of Integrity,” a new work by dance faculty member Christal Brown’s INSPIRIT Dance Company, March 15 and 16 at 8 p.m. in the Kevin P. Mahaney ’84 Center for the Arts.