Ravel - String Quartet in F Major
Liebermann - String Quartet No. 5, Op. 126
Bruch - Octet for Strings in B-flat Major (Op. posth.)

The Emerson String Quartet opens this concert with Ravel’s String Quartet in F Major, one of the most widely performed works in the chamber music repertoire. Despite early pushback from the Parisian press and academia, in addition to criticisms of the work by Gabriel Faure (to whom it was dedicated), the Quartet in F Major was a pivotal point in Ravel’s career and marks the start of his rise from obscurity. Liebermann’s String Quartet No. 5 was commissioned by Music Accord for the Emerson String Quartet. This program concludes with the Bruch Octet for Strings performed by Daniel Hope & Friends with three members of the Emerson: Eugene Drucker, Lawrence Dutton and Paul Watkins. The octet was one of Bruch’s final works, and was lost after his death until 1996, when it premiered.

Lorenza Borrani, violin
Eugene Drucker, violin
Daniel Hope, violin
Benny Kim, violin
Philip Setzer, violin
Lawrence Dutton, viola
Carla Maria Rodrigues, viola
Paul Watkins, cello
Joseph Conyers, double bass