Chicago Harp Quartet makes its Elgin debut April 18
On Monday, April 18, the Chamber Music on the Fox will present the Chicago Harp Quartet in a concert entitled "Strings of Gold" at 7:30 p.m. at the Elgin Art Showcase, 164 Division St., eighth floor.
Featuring the music of Saint-Saens, Khachaturian, and Liszt, among others, the ensemble will perform in the elegant, intimate Elgin Art Showcase, where audience members will get to see and hear the musicians from just a few feet away.
General admission is $20; student tickets are available for $10. Chamber Music on the Fox is also offering a pay-what-you-can option for artists. For details about the concert and to purchase tickets, visit ChamberMusicOnTheFox.org or email sara.sitzer@chambermusiconthefox.org.
The program will feature Camille Saint-Saens' "Danse Macabre," Paul Patterson's "Avian Arabesques," Bernard Andrés "Soirées d'été," Alfredo Ortiz' "Cuban Dream After the Storm," Wilhelm Ganz by "Qui Vive!," Aram Khachaturian's "Masquerade Waltz," Leo Delibes' Prelude and Mazurka from "Coppélia," and Franz Liszt's "Hungarian Rhapsody," No. 2, S. 244/2.
The Chicago Harp Quartet, founded in 2012, has quickly established itself as the leading harp ensemble in the United States. Widely regarded as a Chicago treasure, the Quartet has dedicated itself to presenting innovative, charismatic and forward-thinking programs of existing classics transformed for the ensemble as well as new commissions from composers across the globe. The Quartet has performed at major concert venues across the U.S. including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and the Curtis Institute of Music. As part of its mission, the ensemble collaborates with other cutting edge artists including Third Coast Percussion, Mozawa, and Ho Etsu Taiko and continues their educational endeavors as instructors for the Chicago Harp Ensemble, as well as educational residencies at institutions including Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, New York University and Play On Philly!
The quartet has performed several live concerts on WFMT Chicago, at the Lyon & Healy 150th Anniversary Festival and 2015 Summer Concert Series, at the 41st National Conference of the American Harp Society in New Orleans and by the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series at the Chicago Cultural Center. Among ongoing commissioning projects, the Quartet has premiered works by Bernard Andres, Nicholas Davies, Alfredo Rolando Ortiz, and Hilary Purrington. In 2014, the quartet released their highly successful debut CD, "Soirées d'été."
Founded by ESO musicians Mark Fry and Sara Sitzer, Chamber Music on the Fox is a world-class classical chamber music series serving Elgin and the greater Fox Valley region, whose mission is to present engaging, enriching, and immersive performances and cultural experiences that enhance and enrich the cultural offerings of the area. Their second season has included performances by many of the finest artists in the Chicago and Fox Valley regions, as well as an exciting collaboration with the Elgin Master Chorale's Chamber Singers and Soiree Lyrique. For more information, see ChamberMusicOnTheFox.org.