Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019  2:30 p.m.

Clara Lyon, violin   Maeve Feinberg, violin  

Doyle Armbrust, viola   Russell Rolen, cello

L. v Beethoven: String Quartet No. 16 in F, Op. 135

Shualmit Ran: String Quartet No. 2 "Vistas"

J. Brahms: String Quartet

No. 1 in C minor, Op. 51

The SPEKTRAL QUARTET actively pursues a vivid conversation between exhilarating works of the traditional canon and those written this decade, this year, or this week. With the New York Times writing that "they have everything: a supreme technical command that seems to come easily, a capacity to make complicated music clear, and, most notably...an ability to cast a magic spell", Spektral is known for creating seamless connections across centuries, drawing in the listener with charismatic deliveries, interactive concert formats, an up-close atmosphere, and bold, inquisitive programming.

In 2017, The Chicago Tribune named Spektral Quartet classical music's "Chicagoans of the Year" in part because of the group's creation of three new series around the city – each highlighting a unique mission.

In addition to its 2016 GRAMMY-nominated album Serious Business (Sono Luminus), the ensemble is regarded for forward-thinking endeavors such as Mobile Miniatures, which rallied more than forty composers from across the nation, including David Lang, Augusta Read Thomas, Nico Muhly and Shulamit Ran, to write ringtone-length pieces available for download to mobile devices. As ardent advocates for new music in their home city, the group recorded its debut album, Chambers (Parlour Tapes+), in 2013, featuring works by dynamic, Chicago-based composers. Other discography includes two albums on the Nimbus Records label – Of Being Is A Bird and Ritual Incantations – celebrating the work of composer Augusta Read Thomas as well as From This Point Forward (Azica Records) with bandoneon virtuoso Julien Labro. Most recently, Spektral appears on composer Anthony Cheung's portrait album, Cycles & Arrows (New Focus Records) and jazz saxophonist/composer Miguel Zenón's Yo Soy La Tradición (Miel Music)

It is central to Spektral Quartet's mission to cultivate a love of, and curiosity for, unfamiliar sonic territory and exceptional works of the past among the next generation of string players. Currently ensemble in-residence at the University of Chicago's Department of Music, the quartet has also participated in residencies at the New World Symphony, Stanford University, Northwestern University, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and the Walden School, among others.