This year's Don Michael Randel Ensemble-in-Residence, the acclaimed French string quartet Quatuor Diotima, is recognized around the world for interdisciplinary collaborations that cast a new light on both masterpieces of the quartet canon and contemporary additions to the genre. The quartet will visit campus next week for their first week-long residency. They will return to campus in the 2022 Spring and Autumn quarters for additional residency visits.
Formed in 1996 by graduates of the Conservatoire de Paris, Quatuor Diotima has become an ardent champion of contemporary music, collaborating closely with several of the greatest composers of the late twentieth century including Pierre Boulez and Helmut Lachenmann, as well as vital interpreters of 19th and 20th century repertoire, particularly that of the Second Viennese School (Schoenberg, Berg, and Webern) and of Beethoven, Schubert, Bartók, Debussy, Ravel, and Janáček.
Continue reading below to learn about Quatuor Diotima's Winter Quarter public events.
Life as a String Quartet: An Inside View with Quatuor Diotima
February 22, 2022 | 7:30PM
Fulton Recital Hall, Goodspeed Hall 4th floor
The quartet provides a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings of a professional string quartet, as part of their week-long visit in winter quarter.
Free admission. No tickets required.
Lunchtime Discussion with Quatuor Diotima: The Illusion of Folklore
February 24, 2022 | 12:30PM
International House
RSVP
Quatuor Diotima participates in a lunchtime discussion, including a small performance by the acclaimed string quartet. The presentation, titled "The Illusion of Folklore," explores why Janacek, Bartok and Ligeti (also Britten and Stravinsky) did not limit themselves to an arrangement of popular culture, either their own or those of others. The question of the right of the composer to create new material from all cultures in his or her own language is also discussed, along with a nod to the polemics around Robert Lepage and his production of “Kanata” with Ariane Mnouchkine.
Free admission. Must RSVP.
This event is part of the International House Global Voices Performing Arts & Lecture Series.
UChicago Presents: Quatuor Diotima in Concert
February 25, 2022 | 7:30PM
Mandel Hall
Tickets
$30 | $20 under 35 | $10 Students
Quatuor Diotima presents Bartók’s third and fifth string quartets alongside one of Beethoven’s last composed works, String Quartet No. 15 in A minor.
Supported by the Jazz & New Music program of FACE Foundation and the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States. Presented in partnership with the France Chicago Center.
University Symphony Orchestra with Quatuor Diotima
February 26, 2022 | 8:00PM
Mandel Hall
Tickets
The acclaimed French string quartet Quatuor Diotima, this year’s Don Michael Randel Ensemble-in-Residence at the University of Chicago, joins forces with the University Symphony Orchestra for its upcoming Winter Quarter concert. Known as ardent champions of contemporary music and artists who bring new insights to the standard quartet canon, Quatuor Diotima will collaborate with the USO on Edward Elgar’s richly textured Introduction and Allegro for String Quartet and Orchestra, Op. 47. To frame that distinctive musical offering, the USO performs Antonín Dvořák’s exquisite Serenade for Strings, Op. 22, and the evocative Four Sea Interludes from Benjamin Britten’s masterful opera Peter Grimes.
Free admission. Must reserve tickets in advance.
Donations requested at the door: $10 / $5 students & children
This concert will be recorded and available to watch approximately 3 weeks after the concert.