Ebène Quartet at Beall Concert Hall Eugene Oregon

This evening my friend Fran and I attended a performance by the popular Ebène Quartet at Beall Concert Hall. Quartet musicians include:

Pierre Colombet – Violin
Gabriel Le Magadure – Violin
Mathieu Herzog – Viola
Raphael Merlin – Cello

The group is enthusiastically described as “technically accomplished and musically engaging” and one of the “hottest chamber groups in the world”. Their performance was the last of a six-concert joint presentation of the Oregon Bach Festival and the University of Oregon School of Music and Dance.

The Quartet played:

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart String Quartet No. 19 in C Major
• Franz Schubert String Quartet No. 13 in A Minor
• Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky String Quartet No.1 in D Major

“Distinguished by its youth, open-mindedness, and versatility, France’s Ebène Quartet has had a meteoric rise to the top. Now among the world’s most sought-after quartets, the Quartet made its U.S. début tour in March 2009 to widespread, dazzling critical acclaim. The tour featured performances in Boston, Seattle, Washington, D.C., and at Carnegie Hall.

In October 2009, the Ebène Quartet won ‘Recording of the Year’ at the 2009 Classic FM Gramophone Awards for their CD of Debussy, Ravel, and Fauré string quartets, only the fourth time that a chamber ensemble has won this prestigious prize. This same recording was named Gramophone’s December 2008 Editor’s Choice and received five-star ratings from both BBC Music Magazine and London’s Sunday Times.”

The performance was spectacular – especially the Tchaikovsky piece! Other chamber music performers of the 2011-2012 season included:

1.  Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet
2.  Rebel Baroque Ensemble
3.  Prodigy Conrad Tao
4.  Cypress String Quartet
5.  Salzburg Chamber Soloists

“The 540-seat Beall Concert Hall, modeled after Boston Symphony Concert Hall, is acclaimed for its superb acoustics and Jürgen Ahrend pipe organ.”

Salzburg Chamber Soloists

Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet