Tag: Daedalus Quartet

Daedalus Quartet dazzles at final Harker Concert Series event of the season

Daedalus Quartet displayed adventurous spirit and instrumental mastery at Friday night’s Harker Concert Series season closer. The group opened with “Lyric Quartet” by Harlem Renaissance composer William Grant Still, composed as a tribute to his friend, violinist Joachim Chassman. The pastoral warmth of the first movement, “The Sentimental One,” gave way to the contemplative melodies of “The Quiet One” before ramping up the tempo and playfulness for the final movement, “The Jovial One.”

Daedalus cellist Thomas Kraines then invited composer Laurie San Martin up to the stage to talk briefly about the next piece, “Six Cuts,” which she workshopped with the quartet personally. Consisting largely of unconventional and harsh sounds, “Six Cuts” at times resembled the noises of everyday life, rendered by the quartet’s instruments in sharp detail.

Following the intermission, Daedalus returned with slightly more conventional fare, including Amy Beach’s “Quartet for Strings,” and ended with Mendelssohn’s “Quartet in F minor,” whose galloping final movement was a fitting show for the quartet’s mastery.