Spektral Quartet

Description

Multi-Grammy nominees, the Spektral Quartet actively pursues a vivid conversation between exhilarating works of the traditional repertoire and those written this decade, this year, or this week. Since its inception in 2010, 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.

With a tour schedule including some of the country's most notable concert venues such as the Kennedy Center, Miller Theater, Library of Congress, and NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts, the quartet also takes great pride in its home city of Chicago: championing the work of local composers, bridging social and aesthetic partitions, and cultivating its ongoing collaborations and residencies in the Chicago region.

Named "Chicagoans of the Year" by the Chicago Tribune in 2017, Spektral Quartet is most highly regarded for its creative and stylistic versatility: presenting seasons in which, for instance, a thematic program circling Beethoven seamlessly coexists with an improvised sonic meditation at sunrise, a talent show featuring Spektral fans, and the co-release of a jazz album traversing the folk traditions of Puerto Rico.

Work Sample

This video features Spektral Quartet with flautist Claire Chase (International Contemporary Ensemble, at the National Sawdust venue in Brooklyn, performing composer Anthony Cheung (University of Chicago)'s work "The Real Book of Fake Tunes." This piece was commissioned by Spektral Quartet in 2015 and is a wonderful example of how we look at collaboration with both artists and composers as long form: we've performed "Real Book" in Chicago and nationally many times, have released recordings of the work on two studio albums, and have more performance opportunities with this work booked for summer of 2021.

This performance is a great example of our commitment to long-form collaborations with musicians and composers, and to championing the music of Chicago composers. Written by recent University of Chicago faculty member Anthony Cheung, and commissioned in 2015, we've performed this work several times in Chicago and at venues of national significance. Our recording with Claire Chase appears on two different studio albums, and we have more performance opportunities for this work booked for summer of 2021. We value collaboration as a cornerstone of our practice: it is a way for us to learn and challenge ourselves as musicians and artists.

History

Multi-Grammy nominees, the Spektral Quartet actively pursues a vivid conversation between exhilarating works of the traditional repertoire and those written this decade, this year, or this week. Since its inception in 2010, 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.

With a tour schedule including some of the country's most notable concert venues such as the Kennedy Center, Miller Theater, Library of Congress, and NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts, the quartet also takes great pride in its home city of Chicago: championing the work of local composers, bridging social and aesthetic partitions, and cultivating its ongoing collaborations and residencies in the Chicago region.

Artistic Vision

Spektral Quartet's mission is to honor and expand the string quartet tradition, and to connect intimately with audiences by cultivating lively and inviting concert experiences with open, charismatic presentation, ambitious programming, and innovative formats. In Spektral Quartet, we pride ourselves on our ability to be good storytellers. We believe that excellent storytelling stems from a deep awareness of who is receiving the story, and why, and where, and how. We know that curation goes beyond the scope of a concert program: it extends to presentation, to language and communication, to audience reach, to being responsible caretakers for the context of music that has sometimes been uprooted from the origins of its time, place, and traditional use. We believe that all performances should be audience-focused and accessible, whether for a main stage event or a community venue

Programs for Specific Audience(s) Expertise

We have developed interactive programs for K-12 audiences, including general audience/assembly style programs, as well as more extensive curriculum and programming suited for young musicians. We have also designed programming for the Chicago Park District's Special Recreation program. We have much experience designing residencies that promote intersections between presenting organizations and community institutions, and have built presentations and residency curriculum for pre-professional musicians at places like the Juilliard School, the New World Symphony, the Music Academy of the West, and the University of Iowa.