Musicians
TODD CROW, Music Director and Pianist of the Mt. Desert Festival of Chamber Music since 1996 and Professor Emeritus of Music at Vassar College, has performed extensively in the United States, South America and Europe playing regularly in the major halls of New York, London and elsewhere. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1992 as soloist with the American Symphony, and his London orchestral debut at the Barbican Centre with the London Philharmonic in 1986. Among his CDs are recordings of sonatas by Haydn and Schubert, Liszt’s transcription of Berlioz’s “Symphonie Fantastique,” “Todd Crow: The BBC Recordings, Vols. 1 and 2” (featuring various composers), and most recently a solo CD of 21 Chopin Mazurkas. “Heroic…Mr. Crow showed endless flair, color and stamina.” – THE NEW YORK TIMES
The MIRÓ QUARTET is one of America’s most celebrated string quartets, having performed throughout the world on the most prestigious concert stages for over twenty-five years. As quartet-in-residence at the University of Texas at Austin since 2003, the Miró takes pride in finding new ways to communicate with audiences of all backgrounds while cultivating the longstanding tradition of chamber music. Formed in 1995, the Miró Quartet has been awarded first prize at the Banff International and Naumburg chamber music competitions. The Quartet took its name and its inspiration from Spanish artist Joan Miró whose Surrealist works—with subject matter drawn from the realm of memory, dreams, and imaginative fantasy—are some of the most groundbreaking, influential, and admired of the 20th century.
Each visionary performance of the award-winning BORROMEO STRING QUARTET strengthens and deepens its reputation as one of the most important ensembles of our time. Admired and sought after for both its fresh interpretations of the classical music canon and its championing of works by 20th and 21st century composers, the ensemble has been hailed for its “edge-of-the-seat performances” by the Boston Globe, which called it “simply the best.” The Borromeo String Quartet has received numerous awards throughout its illustrious career, including Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Career Grant and Martin E. Segal Award, and Chamber Music America’s Cleveland Quartet Award. Inspiring audiences for more than 25 years, the Borromeo is a pioneer in its use of technology, and has the trailblazing distinction of being the first string quartet to utilize laptop computers on the concert stage.
Since winning the top prize of the Banff International String Quartet Competition in 2001, the DAEDALUS QUARTET has impressed critics and listeners alike with the security, technical finish, interpretive unity, and sheer gusto of its performances. In 2007 the Quartet was awarded Lincoln Center’s Martin E. Segal Award and won Chamber Music America’s Guarneri String Quartet Award. Having performed at leading venues throughout the world, the Quartet has won plaudits for its adventurous exploration and commitment to contemporary music including many premiere performances. The Quartet has been quartet-in-residence at the University of Pennsylvania since 2006, and the individual members of the group hold degrees from the Juilliard School, Curtis Institute, Cleveland Institute, and Harvard University.
ARIEL QUARTET has garnered critical praise worldwide for more than twenty-five years. Formed when the members were teenagers studying at the Jerusalem Academy Middle School of Music and Dance in Israel, the Ariel is a recipient of the prestigious Cleveland Quartet Award, granted by Chamber Music America in recognition of artistic achievement and career support. Since 2012 the Quartet has served as Faculty Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music where they direct the chamber music program. In addition to maintaining a busy touring schedule in the United States and abroad, they have served as Quartet-in-Residence for the Steans Music Institute at the Ravinia Festival, the Perlman Music Program, as well as the Ernst Stiefel String Quartet-in-Residence at the Caramoor Festival in New York.
STEPHANIE CHASE (Violin) has been a soloist with such orchestras as the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Symphony and the London Philharmonic. Chamber music appearances include concerts at Lincoln Center in New York, as a member of the Boston Chamber Music Society, and such festivals as Caramoor, Marlboro, and Kuhmo (Finland). She made her Carnegie Hall debut at age 18, was a top prize winner at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, and is a recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant.
DOV SCHEINDLIN (Viola), acclaimed by the NEW YORK TIMES as an “extraordinary violist of immense flair,” has been violist with the Arditti, Penderecki and Chester String Quartets. He has appeared as a soloist with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam and has performed in summer festivals in Salzburg, Lucerne and Tanglewood, and with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. He is a member of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and associate member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.
MARK SHUMAN (Cello) was a member of the Composers String Quartet, the founding resident quartet of the Mt. Desert Festival. He has been heard as chamber musician and soloist throughout the world. He was a founding member of the Aulos Ensemble, a period instrument group, a member of the New York City Opera Orchestra, and currently plays with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. His recordings include the complete cello sonatas of Mendelssohn with Todd Crow.
ERIK RALSKE (Horn) is principal French horn of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra where he was appointed in 2010. Prior to that, he was a member of the New York Philharmonic for seventeen seasons where he was a soloist with the orchestra over a dozen times in New York. He has been a featured artist at music festivals around the world and has always been in demand for solo and masterclass appearances. He holds degrees from the Juilliard School, and is on the faculty at Juilliard as well as at the Manhattan School of Music and Mannes College of Music.