Escher String Quartet With Guitarist Jason Vieaux Returning Sunday By Popular Demand

Back by popular demand, Escher String Quartet with guest guitarist Jason Vieaux will be guests of Newtown Friends of Music on Sunday, April 1, at 3 pm. The concert will take place in the recently renovated theater of Edmond Town Hall, 45 Main Street.

“I’m very excited to again play music with such a wonderful young quartet,” Mr Vieaux said.  “We have been preparing new material for this season, and look forward to performing at the amazing Edmond Town Hall.”

The Escher String Quartet is an ensemble which plays with great beauty of tone and supreme musicality. It takes its name from the Dutch graphic artist M C Escher and draws inspiration from the artist’s method of interplay between individual components working together to form a whole.

Within months of its inception in 2005, the quartet was invited by both Pinchas Zukerman and Itzhak Perlman to be quartet-in-residence at each artist’s summer festival. Since then, the ensemble has been featured in venues across the United States and abroad, including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, The Louvre in Paris, Hangzhou Grand Theater in China, as well as the city of London and Cheltenham Festivals.

The members of the quartet — violinists Adam Barnett-Hart and Wu Jie, violist Pierre Lapointe, and cellist Dane Johnsen — are immensely talented and could, each in his or her own right, make it as a soloist. Together, they play with glowing, thoughtfully balanced tone, striking unanimity and insightful musicianship. They have been revered by numerous reviewers as the ensemble to watch. A finely honed technique and focused blend are the group’s strong suit.

Guitarist Jason Vieaux is a musician known for virtuosic and stirring performances, imaginative programming, and uncommon communicative gifts. He is expanding the definition of what it means to be a classical guitarist and changing the face of guitar programming, building a devoted audience and fan base along the way.

Mr Vieaux has performed with more than 50 major orchestras, working with conductors David Robertson, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Michael Stern, Jahja Ling, Stefan Sanderling, David Lockington, Andrew Constantine, and Alasdair Neale.

Last year he co-founded The Curtis Institute of Music Guitar Department with guitarist David Starobin. He has been Head of the Guitar Department of the Cleveland Institute of Music since 2001, and is also affiliated with Philadelphia’s Astral Artists, with whom he gives annual outreach concerts.

Mr Vieaux was the youngest first prize winner in the history of the prestigious Guitar Foundation of America International Competition. 

For the April 1 concert in Newtown, the Escher String Quartet with Jason Vieaux have scheduled a varied program consisting of a quintet by Luigi Boccherin, a string quartet by Respighi, a solo guitar Grande Ouverture by Giuliani, a Vivaldi concerto, and a quintet by Castelnuovo-Tedesco.

An informal reception following the concert will offer concert goers the opportunity to meet and mingle with the musicians.

Single tickets will be are available at the box office for $20, cash or check only, beginning at 2 pm Sunday. Students K-12 are admitted free of charge when accompanied by a ticket-holding adult. Tickets may also be reserved by calling 203-426-6470.

Parking is free behind Edmond Town Hall and the facility is handicapped accessible.

For additional information visit NewtownFriendsOfMusic.org.