Borromeo String Quartet
Encyclopedia
The Borromeo String Quartet is an American
string quartet
, in residence at the New England Conservatory since 1992. They have performed throughout North
and South America
, Europe
, and Asia
, at numerous festivals and in many distinguished chamber music
series. The ensemble was formed in 1989 by violin
ists Nicholas Kitchen and Ruggero Allifranchini, violist
EnSik Choi, and cellist
Yeesun Kim, who were then all young musicians at the Curtis Institute of Music
. Kitchen and Kim are husband and wife. Violist Hsin-Yun Huang joined the ensemble in 1994 after Choi left to pursue other opportunities. Allifranchini and Huang left the ensemble in 2000 to be replaced by violinist William Fedkenheuer. and violist Mai Motobuchi. In 2006 Fedkenheuer left to pursue other opportunities (is now a member of the Fry Street Quartet
) and was replaced by violinist Kristopher Tong.
The quartet's most recent disk, on the GM/Living Archive label features the music of Bela Bartok
, Mohammed Fairouz
and Gunther Schuller
. It was released in January 2010 with the premiere of Fairouz's Chorale Fantasy
The quartet won first prize at the 1990 International String Quartet Competition in Evian, France. In 1991, their winning of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions also earned them concert appearances at the Kennedy Center and the 92nd Street Y
. In September 1998 the Quartet was named recipient of Chamber Music America's prestigious Cleveland Quartet Award. Richard Dyer
of The Boston Globe
wrote that the Borromeo Quartet "combines every 20th-century virtuoso ensemble virtue with an old-world sense of color, character, and style". In 1999 the Quartet was made the ensemble in residence for the National Public Radio program Performance Today
. Recently the quartet has taken to using laptop computers in place of paper sheet music
to allow them to see the "full interplay of a complete score" rather than just individual parts.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
, in residence at the New England Conservatory since 1992. They have performed throughout North
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, at numerous festivals and in many distinguished chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
series. The ensemble was formed in 1989 by violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ists Nicholas Kitchen and Ruggero Allifranchini, violist
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
EnSik Choi, and cellist
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
Yeesun Kim, who were then all young musicians at the Curtis Institute of Music
Curtis Institute of Music
The Curtis Institute of Music is a conservatory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that offers courses of study leading to a performance Diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in Opera, and Professional Studies Certificate in Opera. According to statistics compiled by U.S...
. Kitchen and Kim are husband and wife. Violist Hsin-Yun Huang joined the ensemble in 1994 after Choi left to pursue other opportunities. Allifranchini and Huang left the ensemble in 2000 to be replaced by violinist William Fedkenheuer. and violist Mai Motobuchi. In 2006 Fedkenheuer left to pursue other opportunities (is now a member of the Fry Street Quartet
Fry Street Quartet
The Fry Street Quartet is an American string quartet in residence at the Caine College of the Arts at Utah State University. They performe at festivals and venues around the world, and have garnered an excellent reputation and numerous awards in the process...
) and was replaced by violinist Kristopher Tong.
The quartet's most recent disk, on the GM/Living Archive label features the music of Bela Bartok
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
, Mohammed Fairouz
Mohammed Fairouz
Mohammed Fairouz is an Arab American composer.Having fulfilling many commissions and created a substantial body of frequently performed works, he is considered one of the most sought after composers of the young generation. Fairouz began composing at an early age and studied at the New England...
and Gunther Schuller
Gunther Schuller
Gunther Schuller is an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, and jazz musician.- Biography and works :...
. It was released in January 2010 with the premiere of Fairouz's Chorale Fantasy
The quartet won first prize at the 1990 International String Quartet Competition in Evian, France. In 1991, their winning of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions also earned them concert appearances at the Kennedy Center and the 92nd Street Y
92nd Street Y
92nd Street Y is a multifaceted cultural institution and community center located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States, at the corner of E. 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue. Its full name is 92nd Street Young Men's and Young Women's Hebrew Association...
. In September 1998 the Quartet was named recipient of Chamber Music America's prestigious Cleveland Quartet Award. Richard Dyer
Richard Dyer
Richard W. Dyer is an English academic specialising in cinema. As of 2006 he is Professor of Film Studies at King's College London. Previously he was at the University of Warwick...
of The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
wrote that the Borromeo Quartet "combines every 20th-century virtuoso ensemble virtue with an old-world sense of color, character, and style". In 1999 the Quartet was made the ensemble in residence for the National Public Radio program Performance Today
Performance Today
Performance Today is a Peabody Award-winning classical music radio show, currently hosted by Fred Child. It is the most listened-to daily classical music radio program in the United States, with 1.2 million listeners on 237 stations...
. Recently the quartet has taken to using laptop computers in place of paper sheet music
Sheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
to allow them to see the "full interplay of a complete score" rather than just individual parts.