University at Buffalo - The State University of New York

Published: February 28, 2008

By PHILIP E. REHARD
Reporter Contributor

The Pacifica String Quartet will present the fifth concert of the Department of Music’s annual six-concert Slee/Beethoven String Quartet Cycle at 7 p.m. March 30 in Lippes Concert Hall in Slee Hall, North Campus.

Returning to UB for the first time since 2004, the quartet will perform Quartet in A major, Op. 18, No. 5 and Quartet in B-Flat major, Op. 130.

Recognized for its virtuosity, exuberant performance style and often-daring repertory choices, the Pacifica Quartet has carved out a compelling musical path. Since the group first came together in 1994, the ensemble has swept top prizes in several leading international competitions, from the Cleveland Quartet Award to the Naumburg. In 2006, the Pacifica was awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant—only the second chamber music ensemble to be selected for the award.

The members of the quartet—Simin Ganatra, violin; Masumi Per Rostad, viola; Sibbi Bernhardsson, violin; and Brandon Vamos, cello—are ardent advocates of contemporary music, commissioning and performing as many as eight new works a year. A champion of the string quartets of Elliott Carter, the ensemble has distinguished itself with performances of the complete cycle of five quartets in New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Cleveland, and in Japan and Germany and at the Edinburgh International Festival. The quartet recently released the first in a two-disc set of the complete string quartets of Carter in celebration of his 100th birthday.

The members of the Pacifica Quartet serve on the faculty of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and as the faculty quartet in residence. They are also resident performing artists at the University of Chicago and the Longy School in Boston. In addition, they regularly teach and perform at summer festivals, including Maverick Concerts, Caramoor International Music Festival, Fontana Chamber Arts, Music in the Vineyards, Interlochen Arts Camp and the Madeline Island Music Festival.

Advance tickets for the concert are $12 for general admission and $9 for UB faculty/staff/alumni and senior citizens, and $5 for students. Tickets at the door are $20, $15 and $8. Tickets can be obtained at the Slee Hall box office, the Center for the Arts box office and at any Ticketmaster outlet, including Ticketmaster.com.