The Juilliard String Quartet and Clarinetist Charles Neidich give world premiere performance of Ralph Shapey's "2 for 5" (Concerto Grosso), a work written for them, Monday, October 22 at 8 PM in The Peter Jay Sharp Theater

Mozart's Adagio and Fugue, K. 546, Elliott Carter's String Quartet No. 2, and Brahms' Quintet for Clarinet and Strings in B Minor, Op. 115 complete the program

The Juilliard String Quartet, which celebrated its 60th anniversary last season, performs two recitals this season as part of the Daniel Saidenberg Faculty Recital Series on Monday, October 22, 2007 and Monday, February 25, 2008, both at 8 PM, in The Peter Jay Sharp Theater at Juilliard. On Monday, October 22, the program features the world premiere performance of Ralph Shapey’s 2 for 5  (Concerto Grosso) for B-flat Clarinet and String Quartet written for the Juilliard String Quartet and clarinetist and Juilliard faculty member Charles Neidich. They also perform Mozart’s Adagio and Fugue, K. 546; Elliott Carter’s String Quartet No. 2 (1959); and Brahms’ Quintet for Clarinet and Strings in B Minor, Op. 115 with Mr. Neidich performing on an authentic copy of a period clarinet like the one that Brahms’ original soloist would have used. 
      
The members of Juilliard String Quartet, violinists Joel Smirnoff and Ronald Copes, violist Samuel Rhodes, and cellist Joel Krosnick, have been committed to Ralph Shapey’s music throughout their careers, both as an ensemble and as individuals. Mr. Shapey had received numerous awards and commissions during his lifetime, including being inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Science. After his passing in 2002, it was revealed that he left behind an unanticipated legacy. The Quartet explained: “We were informed by his widow, the soprano Elsa Charlston, that he had left us two posthumous pieces: a clarinet quintet and a piano quintet, one for us and Charles Neidich and the other for us and Gilbert Kalish. This was a surprise gift expressing appreciation to six dear friends who he felt had devoted considerable energy over many years to the recreation and performance of his music. 2 for 5 is a work in two movements: Cantabile and Solos. It is a relatively short work. The string writing features the C-string of both the viola and cello lowered to A, in a specific reference to the bass line as cantus firmus.”

FREE tickets are required for the October 22 recital and will be available beginning October 8 at the Juilliard Box Office, located at 60 Lincoln Center Plaza.  Box Office hours are Monday through Friday, from 11 AM - 6 PM. For further information, call (212) 769-7406 or visit www.juilliard.edu. To get to the Box Office, go to West 65th Street and Amsterdam Avenue and take the escalator/elevator up to the plaza level.

Celebrated for performances of works by composers as diverse as Beethoven, Schubert, Bartók and Carter, the Juilliard String Quartet has long been recognized as the quintessential American string quartet. As quartet-in-residence at New York City's Juilliard School, the Juilliard String Quartet is widely admired for a seminal influence on aspiring string players around the world. The Quartet continues to play an important role in the formation of new American ensembles, and was instrumental in the formation of the Alexander, American, Concord, Emerson, La Salle, New World, Mendelssohn, Tokyo, Brentano, Lark, St. Lawrence, and Colorado string quartets.

 In the 2007-08 season, the Juilliard String Quartet offers special programming in recognition of Elliott Carter’s 100th birthday – a composer with whom they’ve had a long and remarkable collaboration.  As ardent advocates of Carter’s complex and visionary string quartets, the Juilliard’s landmark recording of Quartets Nos. 1 - 4 was released by Sony in 1991. This season they perform his String Quartet No. 2 and partake in celebrations of his work at the Ravinia Festival. They also tour to California, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Washington DC. Abroad, the Juilliard Quartet embarks on another extensive tour across Europe with stops in the Netherlands and Paris, and returns to Japan for the Miyazaki Festival.

The ensemble has been associated with Sony Classical and its predecessors since 1949. In celebration of the Quartet's 50th anniversary, Sony issued seven CDs containing previously unreleased material as well as notable performances from the Quartet's award-winning discography. With more than 100 releases, the ensemble is one of the most widely recorded string quartets of our time; Juilliard String Quartet recordings of the complete Beethoven quartets, the complete Schoenberg quartets, and the Debussy and Ravel string quartets all have received Grammy Awards.

 The Juilliard School presents more than 700 dance, drama, and music events annually. During ongoing renovations, a full calendar of events is scheduled. For a complete listing of events, as well as construction updates, go to www.juilliard.edu.