This performance by the Callisto Quartet took place on Saturday, March 5, 2022 at 2:00 pm.
Program
| Composer | Work | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Felix Mendelssohn | String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 13 | 1827 |
| Intermission | ||
| Ludwig van Beethoven | String Quartet No. 15 in A minor, Op. 132 | 1825 |
About the Callisto Quartet
Praised for their “intensity and bravado” and the “cohesion and intonation one might expect from an ensemble twice their age” (Third Coast Review), the Callisto Quartet brings together four dedicated and passionate musicians who share a love for chamber music and a true desire for excellence.
Since their formation in 2016 at the Cleveland Institute of Music, the quartet has quickly garnered top prizes in nearly every major international chamber music competition and has been hailed by audiences across North America and Europe. Grand prize winners of the 2018 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and Second Prize Winners of the 2019 Banff International String Quartet Competition, the Callisto Quartet has also taken home prizes from the Bordeaux (2019), Melbourne (2018), and Wigmore Hall (2018) competitions. Currently serving as the Fellowship String Quartet at Yale University where they help to coach chamber music for undergraduate ensembles, the quartet has formerly held residencies at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, and the prestigious Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid, Spain.
The quartet has participated and performed in many renowned chamber music festivals such as the La Jolla Music Society Summerfest, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, the Emilia Romagna Festival, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, the McGill International String Quartet Academy, the Juilliard String Quartet Seminar, and the Robert Mann String Quartet Seminar. In 2018, at the invitation of Gerhard Schulz, they attended the Prussia Cove International Musicians Seminar where they also worked with Gidon Kremer and Thomas Adès. As part of their prize from the Wigmore Hall Competition, the quartet received an invitation to the Jeunesses Musicales International Chamber Music Campus in Weikersheim, Germany where they worked with Heime Müller, Donald Weilerstein, and the Cuarteto Casals.
Highlights of their recent performances include debuts in New York City and Chicago on the Schneider Concert Series and at Ravinia Festival, respectively, as well as at the Heidelberg String Quartet Festival. They were also featured in Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall in July 2019 as Grand Prize winners of the 4th Manhattan International Music Competition Chamber Music Division. Notable collaborations include appearances with cellist David Geringas at the Cleveland Cello Society’s 20th anniversary concert as well as a collaboration with clarinetist Frank Cohen on the ChamberFest Cleveland Series. Over the past two seasons at the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival they have collaborated with Paul Watkins, Lawrence Power, Gilles Vonsattel, and John Novacek.
The Callisto Quartet is committed to continually broadening their musical horizons by drawing inspiration from a plethora of mentors and musical approaches. They also believe strongly in passing along their musical insights to younger students and sharing their music in their communities. To this end they have served as faculty and given masterclasses at numerous schools and festivals including the Bravo International Chamber Music Workshop, University of Central Florida, Midwest Young Artists Conservatory, the Greenville Fine Arts Center, and the CIM Preparatory Division. They frequently perform in schools, retirement homes, and other community centers, and are featured as ensemble in residence at the Carolina Music Museum in Greenville, SC. The Callisto Quartet is managed exclusively by Earl Blackburn of Kanzen Arts.
About the Artists
Paul Aguilar
Hailing from a Venezuelan-American family in South Carolina, Paul Aguilar began studying violin at age five. He earned his bachelor’s degree in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) where he was a full-scholarship student of Jaime Laredo and Jan Sloman.
Paul has won top prizes in various competitions including first Prize in the 2016 Milhaud Competition and 2017 Spring Concerto Competition, both at CIM. Paul is a 2019 MPower Grant recipient from the Sphinx Organization.
.
.
.
.
Rachel Stenzel Aguilar
Originally from Holiday Hills, IL, Rachel Aguilar (Stenzel) began her formal training on the piano at age five and later on the violin at age nine. She earned B.A. and M.A. degrees in violin performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM). Her primary teachers include Paul Kantor, Stephen Rose, Jan Mark Sloman, and Almita Vamos.
Rachel plays on an 1850 Chanot violin generously on loan from the Maestro Foundation, and a bow generously on loan from the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation.
.
.
.
.
Eva Kennedy
Violist Eva Kennedy has had a lifelong passion for chamber music ever since playing in her very first quartet at the age of 7 in her hometown of Worthington, Ohio. As a founding member of the Callisto Quartet, she has had the opportunity to perform some of classical music’s greatest repertoire across North America and around the world. The Callisto Quartet has been internationally recognized with major prizes from the Banff, Bordeaux, Melbourne, and Fischoff competitions, and maintains an active performing schedule with appearances at venues such as Carnegie Hall and the Ravinia Festival, among many others.
Eva holds Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, as well as a Master’s degree from Rice University, where she was in residence with the Callisto Quartet. She also spent a semester at the Paris Conservatory as an exchange student. Her mentors have included Deborah Price, Jeffrey Irvine, Sabine Toutain, Lynne Ramsey, and James Dunham.
Alongside her passion for performing, Eva also has a great love for teaching. This year, she has found great joy in implementing a new chamber music curriculum developed by the Callisto Quartet, designed to demystify the process behind great ensemble playing for students and help them become their own best teachers. She has taught and given masterclasses for violinists, violists, and chamber ensembles at numerous music schools, festivals, and universities across the country.
Eva is Canadian through her father’s side and has both American and Canadian citizenships. Outside of music, she enjoys rock climbing and traveling with her family.
Hannah Moses
Praised for her sensitivity and beauty of sound, cellist Hannah Moses has performed worldwide both as a soloist and as a founding member of the Callisto Quartet. A Cleveland native, Hannah holds degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music and Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where her teachers included Richard Weiss, Melissa Kraut, and Norman Fischer. Hannah’s greatest passion is chamber music, and as cellist of the Callisto Quartet, she enjoys traveling and performing around the globe.
A committed educator as well as performer, Hannah served on cello faculty at the Cleveland Music School Settlement and the Aurora School of Music for several years, and appeared as guest artist and juror at the 2018 Tennessee Cello Workshop Competition, after winning the competition in 2015. Hannah has been actively involved in chamber music coaching at CIM’s Young Artist Program, of which she is a graduate, and has been on faculty at the Hudson Montessori School Conservatory and the Western Reserve Chamber Festival. Currently, Hannah is on cello and chamber music faculty at the Suzuki Music School of Westport.
When not traveling with the Callisto Quartet, Hannah enjoys running, writing, and rock climbing. She currently resides in New Haven, CT, with her cat, Snickers.