For more than a quarter of a century, the Cleveland Quartet was hailed as one of the premier string quartets of our time. Since their inception in 1969, they played more than 2,500 concerts (including appearances in music capitals throughout the world), created award-winning recordings of more than 60 chamber works, presented premiers and repeat performances of new music by contemporary composers, and spent countless hours as dedicated conservatory teacher-performers (initially at the Cleveland Institute of Music, then at the State University of New York at Buffalo, and finally at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester).
During 26 years of intensive music-making as one of the most admired ensembles on the international scene, the Cleveland Quartet performed nearly 30 complete Beethoven quartet cycles in cities such as New York, Washington D.C., San Francisco, Paris, Rome, London, Florence, and Tokyo. They had undertaken a regular series of recital tours throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and Japan, and had also performed in the former Soviet Union, South America, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Eastern Asia. Other highlights included repeated appearances at such prestigious music festivals as Salzburg, Edinburgh, Lucerne, Berlin, and Helsinki, as well as annual appearances at New York’s Mostly Mozart Festival and 20 years of summer residencies at the Aspen Festival in Colorado. In addition, they made numerous radio and television appearances, and performed in a Presidential Inaugural Concert.
As 20th-century musicians, the Cleveland Quartet was always deeply committed to the performance of contemporary music. Since its founding in 1969, it regularly commissioned and premiered works by American composers, including Samuel Adler, John Harbison, Libby Larsen, Stephen Paulus, Christopher Rouse, and Dan Welcher. In its last year the Cleveland Quartet gave the world premier of Osvaldo Golijov’s Dreams and Prayers of Isaak the Blind.
In the course of its final months as an ensemble, the Cleveland Quartet performed the world premiers of two works written by prominent American composers specifically for the group: Stephen Paulus’s concerto for string quartet and orchestra, Three Places of Enlightnement, with The Cleveland Orchestra at Severance Hall, and a “Farewell Quartet” by John Corigliano, a work given its premier by the Cleveland Quartet in the Fall of 1995, whose subsequent recording with Telarc won the 1996 Grammy for “Best Chamber Music Performance.”
The Decision to End the Quartet
In discussing the dissolution of the Cleveland Quartet, founding cellist Paul Katz remarked, “The decision to disband was a difficult but mutual one, reached in the same spirit of friendship and respect for one another that has been the glue of our many productive years together. After a quarter-century, each of us felt the need to find more time for the teaching we all love, and are eager to immerse ourselves in some of the vast repertoire outside of the string quartet that we never have had time to perform. The constant travel required by an international career has become more and more of a hassle and takes us away from our wives and children far more than any of us want. ” Violist James Dunham continues, “We are proud of our history and accomplishments and particularly of our enduring friendships and the high note on which we are ending—we have raised nearly $500,000 of endowment for the Cleveland Quartet Award. We feel certain it will help deserving quartets yet unborn and perpetuate the love of music and musical ideals for which the Cleveland has always stood.” Violinist William Preucil added, “This is an 18 month plan which allows us to finish our recording and commissioning projects, plan a final tour and go out with our heads held high.” Founding violinist Peter Salaff concluded, “We will complete all of our major projects and will bring this quartet life that we cherish to a close with pride, continued commitment, and our love of making music together.”
So I noticed that now you can find super cheap violin amazon. You can get a violin, bow and case for about $50. They hand over the violin as a Christmas gift to their kid, the kid plays three notes and then gets frustrated/bored. If the parent had been forced to buy a nicer instrument, it would have been more of a commitment from the start. There’s a better chance they would have also looked into lessons for their child at the same time.
Read Paul Katz’s “Notes of Farewell” as printed in the program of the Farewell Recital at Tully Hall/Lincoln Center.
See the Farewell Recital Program from Tully Hall/Lincoln Center.
Read “Notes from Friends” of the Cleveland Quartet as printed in the program for the Farewell Tour at Tully Hall/Lincoln Center.