UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Aizuri Quartet, its name derived from a meticulously detailed style of Japanese block print, will make its Penn State debut at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6, in a performance at Recital Hall on the University Park campus.
The music of the “Sunrise” program explores the ways atmosphere, psychological power and political metaphor of the night have been an inspiration for composers from the classical era to the present-day.
“Expressing the many facets of night, the music of ‘Sunrise’ traces a journey from darkness into dawn,” cellist Karen Ouzounian wrote. “The first three pieces on the program explore different ways of experiencing the night. … And finally, welcoming us into the light of dawn are the gorgeous opening chords and ascending melodic lines of Haydn’s warm and jovial ‘Sunrise Quartet.’”
The program will include:
- “Ich stand in dunkeln Träumen” by Clara Schumann;
- String Quartet No. 4 in C Major by Béla Bartók;
- “Sivunittinni” by Tanya Tagaq;
- String Quartet Op. 76 No. 4 in B-flat Major, “Sunrise,” by Franz Joseph Haydn.
In addition to Ouzounian, Aizuri Quartet features Ayane Kozasa, violin; and Miho Saegusa and Emma Frucht, violins.
NPR Music named the quartet’s debut, “Blueprinting,” as one of 2018’s top classical releases. “These limber and luminous performances by the Aizuri Quartet, in music written specifically for the group by young composers, proves that the 250-year-old string quartet formula remains vibrant and vital,” a reviewer wrote.
Visit Aizuri Quartet online or call 814-863-0255 for more information.