The Vega String Quartet Presents Music of Jewish Composers

Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta 30th Anniversary Season presents The Vega Quartet at The Breman Museum, 

The Vega String Quartet Presents Music of Jewish Composers

Emily Daggett Smith & Jessica Shuang Wu, violins; Yinzi Kong, viola; Guang Wang, cello

The Vega String Quartet, Quartet-in-Residence at Emory University, is cultivating a new generation of chamber music lovers through dynamic performances and innovative community engagement. The New York Times raved that “[the Quartet’s] playing had a kind of clean intoxication to it, pulling the listener along…the musicians took real risks in their music making” and the L.A. Times praised their “triumphant L.A. debut.” They concertize both nationally and internationally, most recently in Baltimore, Chicago, Nashville, Berlin, San Miguel Mexico, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the Brahmssaal in Vienna’s Musikverein. The Quartet’s major performing projects at Emory have included the complete cycle of Beethoven quartets, as well as pairing Bach’s complete works for solo violin, viola and cello with the six Bartók quartets. They have also developed a series of “Jazz Meets Classics” programs, bringing the two genres together.

One of the unique aspects of the Quartet’s residency at Emory is to bring performance into the classroom, collaborating with academic professors to create interdisciplinary parallels and conversations. They also enrich the cultural life of their community, having founded the Emory Youth Chamber Music Program, which gives intensive training in small ensemble playing to advanced pre-college students. The Quartet was appointed to the roster of the Woodruff Arts Center’s Young Audiences program, engaging thousands of students throughout the greater Atlanta school system. They have also held residencies in Augusta, Jacksonville and Juneau which combined traditional performances with educational outreach, performances in non-traditional venues and masterclasses for area students.

The Vega Quartet has won numerous international awards, including at the Bordeaux String Quartet Competition, as well as top prizes from the Coleman Chamber Ensemble Competition, the Carmel Chamber Music Competition, and the National Society of Arts and Letters String Quartet Competition. They tour throughout Asia, Europe and North America and have appeared at Weill Hall and Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, Bargemusic, and Duke Hall at the Royal Academy of Music, London. The members of the Vega Quartet collaborate with some of the world’s finest musicians including Andres Cardenes, Eliot Fisk, Christopher O’Riley, William Preucil, Richard Stoltzman, Mark O’Connor, Robert Spano, Charles Wadsworth, Peter Wiley, and the Eroica Trio. They also commission, premier and record works by leading composers. The Quartet is a frequent guest at numerous music festivals, including Amelia Island, Aspen, Brevard, Highlands-Cashiers, Juneau Jazz & Classics, Kingston, Mostly Mozart, Rockport, San Miguel de Allende, and SummerFest La Jolla.

The Vega Quartet’s Residency at Emory is supported by the Rebecca Katz-Doft Chamber Music Endowment.