Ariel Quartet Chosen as Next Resident Ensemble in NEC’s Professional String Quartet Training Program
Ariel Quartet (Susan Wilson photos)
For Immediate Release:
March 4, 2008
The Ariel String Quartet has been chosen to be the next resident ensemble in New England Conservatory’s prestigious Professional String Quartet Training Program. Under the direction of Paul Katz, founding cellist of the Cleveland Quartet, the training program has shaped the artistic development of some of America’s most important young quartets including the multi-prize winning Kuss, Biava, Jupiter, and Parker Quartets.
Formed in Israel in 1998, the Ariel Quartet (Gershon Gerchikov, Alexandra Kazovsky, violin; Sergey Tarashchansky, viola; Amit Even-Tov, cello) was originally coached by violinist Avi Abramovich, a leading teacher in Israel, and present head of the string department at the Jerusalem Academy of Music. Since 2004, the group has studied at NEC under the tutelage of Kim Kashkashian, Paul Katz and Martha Strongin Katz. All four of the players are 23 years old. Gerchikov and Even-Tov are Israeli natives; Kazovsky and Tarashchansky emigrated as children to Israel from Russia and Ukraine respectively.
Several times chosen to be an Honors Ensemble during its years at NEC, the Ariel Quartet is known for its versatility and wide-ranging repertory. It has been chosen to perform Puccini in the recent Puccini 150 Celebration, Webern with John Heiss’s NEC Contemporary Ensemble, and Gunther Schuller in that composer’s 80th Birthday celebrations.
On March 26 at 6 p.m. in the Keller Room, the Ariels (and NEC’s Laurel Quartet) will work with the visiting Pacifica Quartet on the string quartets of Elliott Carter in preparation for the Conservatory’s Centennial celebration performances of all five of the notoriously difficult pieces next December.
The Professional String Quartet Training program offers two years of intensive training and coaching for exceptional groups that show the talent and commitment necessary to pursue a concert career. Groups selected for the program work with director Paul Katz as well as NEC’s other distinguished strings and chamber music faculty. They receive top-quality training in all aspects of musicianship and career development, performances and masterclasses in the community, NEC’s professional certificate in the art of string quartet playing plus an NEC degree or diploma, full tuition waiver, and a living stipend for each semester of full-time study.
For further information, check the NEC Website
For concert information, click here or call the NEC Concert Line at 617-585-1122. NEC’s Jordan Hall, Brown Hall, Williams Hall and the Keller Room are located at 30 Gainsborough St., corner of Huntington Ave. St. Botolph Hall is located at 241 St. Botolph St. between Gainsborough and Mass Ave.
ABOUT NEW ENGLAND CONSERVATORY
Recognized nationally and internationally as a leader among music schools, New England Conservatory offers rigorous training in an intimate, nurturing community to 750 undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral music students from around the world. Its faculty of 225 boasts internationally esteemed artist-teachers and scholars. Its alumni go on to fill orchestra chairs, concert hall stages, jazz clubs, recording studios, and arts management positions worldwide. Nearly half of the Boston Symphony Orchestra is composed of NEC trained musicians and faculty.
The oldest independent school of music in the United States, NEC was founded in 1867 by Eben Tourjee. Its curriculum is remarkable for its wide range of styles and traditions. On the college level, it features training in classical, jazz, Contemporary Improvisation, world and early music. Through its Preparatory School, School of Continuing Education, and Community Collaboration Programs, it provides training and performance opportunities for children, pre-college students, adults, and seniors. Through its outreach projects, it allows young musicians to engage with non-traditional audiences in schools, hospitals, and nursing homes—thereby bringing pleasure to new listeners and enlarging the universe for classical music and jazz.
NEC presents more than 600 free concerts each year, many of them in Jordan Hall, its world- renowned, 100-year old, beautifully restored concert hall. These programs range from solo recitals to chamber music to orchestral programs to jazz and opera scenes. Every year, NEC’s opera studies department also presents two fully staged opera productions at the Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston.
NEC is co-founder and educational partner of “From the Top,” a weekly radio program that celebrates outstanding young classical musicians from the entire country. With its broadcast home in Jordan Hall, the show is now carried by National Public Radio and is heard on 250 stations throughout the United States.
Contact: Ellen Pfeifer
Public Relations Manager
New England Conservatory
617-585-1143
epfeifer@newenglandconservatory.edu