LCMS Presents the New Orford String Quartet

For Immediate Release: October 5, 2013

 LANGLEY COMMUNITY MUSIC SCHOOL PRESENTS THE NEW ORFORD STRING QUARTET

“…Canada’s top string quartet…they’ve taken our chamber music scene by storm…” (CBC 2013)

 LANGLEY, BC – Langley Community Music School (LCMS) is delighted to welcome the New Orford String Quartet to the Rose Gellert Hall on Saturday, October 19, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. This extraordinary quartet includes Jonathan Crow, violin, Andrew Wan, violin, Eric Nowlin, viola, and Brain Manker, cello.

“The audience will hear two big masterpieces written by German giants, Beethoven and Brahms,” says Elizabeth Bergmann, artistic director concerts for LCMS. “It is always such a thrill to hear these great works. I am especially pleased the New Orford String Quartet will also perform the first quartet by one of Canada’s most famous composers, R. Murray Schafer. The piece was written in 1970 and was commissioned by the Purcell String Quartet, of which LCMS Artistic Director Emeritus Ian Hampton was cellist. In his first work for quartet, Schafer explores new sound ideas for the string quartet idiom.”

“The string quartet is considered by many chamber music fans to be the ultimate ensemble in music collaboration,” adds Bergmann. “It’s not easy to create something special together. In the string quartet, you have two violins, one viola and one cello, so it’s basically a representation of the strings in an orchestra. However, since the players have to ‘hold their own’ so to speak, one can witness elements of absolute intense communication, energy, exchange and intimacy among the players. This is what makes listening to a string quartet so exciting!”

Forty-five years ago a new Canadian string quartet was formed at the Jeunesses-Musicales du Canada summer camp at Parc National du Mont-Orford (today the Orford Arts Centre). The Orford String

Quartet gave its first public concert on August 11, 1965. Through its many recordings and tours both at home and abroad, the Orford String Quartet became one of Canada’s best-known and most illustrious musical ensembles. After 26 years and more than 2000 concerts on six continents, the Quartet disbanded, giving its last concert on July 28, 1991. In July 2009 the New Orford String Quartet arose from the fame and tradition of its glorious predecessor, giving its first concert for a sold-out audience at the Orford Arts Centre. In the short time since its creation the New Orford Quartet has seen astonishing success, giving annual concerts at the Orford Arts Centre for national CBC broadcast and receiving unanimous critical acclaim, including two Opus Awards for Concert of the Year. Reviews of the New

Orford String Quartet debut concert in the Montreal Gazette applauded a concert performance that was “sweet, balanced and technically unassailable less than a week after their members met for the first time… Lustily applauded in the Orford Arts Centre, the concert was true to the Orford name in its beauty and refinement. Indeed, there was no trace of roughness anywhere”. Le Devoir described the musical result as “stupefying”.

Hailed for their “ravishingly beautiful tone” as well as their “extraordinary technical skills and musicianship” the members of the New Orford String Quartet are all principal players in the Montreal and Toronto Symphony Orchestras. In 2009, these like-minded musicians came together with a plan to revolutionize the concept of string quartet playing in Canada, bringing together four stars of the classical music field for a limited touring schedule on a project-by-project basis inspired by the success of modern chamber orchestras such as the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Mahler Chamber Orchestra. Rather than committing to a year-round schedule, the members of the quartet meet for residencies in various centres for short periods of time, providing a fresh perspective on interpretations of standard string quartet repertoire. The New Orford String Quartet is also dedicated to promoting Canadian works, both new commissions and neglected repertoire from the previous century. Each New Orford String Quartet project has included performances of a major Canadian string quartet from the 20th century or a premiere of a newly composed work, and programs have included repertoire from a period that spans over 225 years, from Haydn and Beethoven to Sir Ernest MacMillan and Denis Gougeon. For more information please visit www.neworford.com or www.facebook.com/neworford.

The Rose Gellert Hall concert season is proudly sponsored by Hub Insurance.

Tickets are $30 for adults, $25 for seniors, and $20 for students. Call the box office for tickets at 604.534.2848. The Rose Gellert Hall is located at 4899 207 Street in Langley.

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