This performance by the Balourdet Quartet took place on Saturday, September 4, 2021 at 3:00 pm.
Program
| Composer | Work | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Ludwig van Beethoven | String Quartet No. 8 in E minor, Op. 59:2 | 1806 |
| Intermission | ||
| Claude Debussy | String Quartet in G minor, L. 91 | 1893 |
About the Balourdet Quartet
The Balourdet Quartet, based in Boston, is currently in residence at the New England Conservatory’s Professional String Quartet Program. The quartet received the Grand Prize at the 2021 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition as well as the top prize awarded in the 2021 Premio Paolo Borciani in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The group also received the Gold Medal in the 2020 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, the Gold Medal and Audience Award at the 2021 Chamber Music Yellow Springs Competition, and the Second Prize in the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Chamber Music Competition.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Balourdet appeared in numerous virtual performances for institutions such as the Schneider Concert Series, the New England Conservatory’s First Mondays Series, Music For Food, and Massachusetts Peace Action. The group also curated and performed an educational program for over 500 children in schools across the Michiana region, as well as gave masterclasses through the Fischoff Chamber Music Academy. They have also conducted workshops and masterclasses for NEC’s Preparatory Division, Upper Valley Chamber Music Center, and string students in the Dallas area.
The Balourdet has shared the stage with renowned artists including Cho-Liang Lin, as well as members of the Dover Quartet. It has studied and performed at festivals including the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Robert Mann String Quartet Institute, and Accademia Musicale Chigiana. The Balourdet Quartet works primarily with Paul Katz at the New England Conservatory, as well as members of the Cleveland and Borromeo Quartets. The quartet was formed in 2018 at Rice University in Houston, Texas under the tutelage of James Dunham, Norman Fischer, and Cho-Liang Lin.
The quartet gets its name from Antoine Balourdet, chef extraordinaire at the Hotel St. Bernard and beloved member of the Taos School of Music community.
About the Artists
Angela Bae
Born in Seoul, Korea, violinist Angela Bae has appeared as a soloist in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Disney Hall, and Sydney Town Hall, and when she was 16, she became the youngest ever Concertmaster of the American Youth Symphony in LA. She has won awards in Korea and the United States, including the Korea Times Competition, Alexander and Buono International Competition, and Mika Hasler Competition. As a chamber musician, she has performed with artists including Gil Shaham, Kenneth Goldsmith, Geoffrey Nutall, and Alexander Sitkovetsky.
Ms. Bae is a recent graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music Professional String Quartet Program where she studied with Donald Weilerstein. She also studied with Paul Kantor at Rice University and Phillip Levy in Los Angeles.
Justin DeFilippis
A native of New Jersey, Justin DeFilippis is a violinist in the Balourdet Quartet. He is a graduate of the New England Conservatory, Rice University Shepherd School of Music, and Juilliard School Pre-College Division, where his major teachers were Miriam Fried, Nicholas Kitchen, Cho-Liang Lin, Donald Weilerstein, and Elizabeth Chang. He has collaborated alongside artists including the Silkroad Ensemble, Jon Kimura Parker, and Matthew Lipman, as well as members of the Ying and American Quartets.
Benjamin Zannoni
Benjamin Zannoni, the violist of the Balourdet Quartet, has performed around the world and shared the stage with artists such as Ralph Kirshbaum, Elmar Oliveira, Cho-Liang Lin, Anthony McGill and Marc-André Hamelin. He is a recent graduate from the New England Conservatory and has also received degrees from Rice University, Manhattan School of Music and the Juilliard School, where he studied with Martha Katz, Mai Motobuchi, James Dunham, Karen Dreyfus, Pinchas Zukerman, Patinka Kopec, Heidi Castleman and Robert Vernon. Zannoni is originally from Houston, Texas.
Russell Houston
Russell Houston, from Dallas, Texas, is the cellist of the Balourdet Quartet. He is the winner of the Lynn Harrell Concerto Competition and Sorantin International Competition and performed as soloist with orchestras including the Dallas and Plano Symphonies. Houston has had the privilege of sharing the stage with renowned artists such as Denis Bouriakov, Cho-Liang Lin, Brinton Smith, and members of the Cleveland and Dover Quartets. He holds degrees from the New England Conservatory, Rice University, Colburn Conservatory, and Northwestern University, where he studied with Paul Katz, Brinton Smith, Clive Greensmith, and Hans Jensen.