United by their love of chamber music, four undergraduate students came together in 2008 at Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute of Music to form the Dover Quartet. Fourteen years later, the Dover Quartet has become one of the most sought-after string quartets in the world.
The award-winning quartet will perform music by Beethoven, Mendelssohn and African-American composer William Grant Still at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 15, at the UH-Hilo Performing Arts Center, as part of the Hawaii Concert Society’s 61st season.
Comprised of violinists Joel Link and Bryan Lee, cellist Camden Shaw and violist Hezekiah Leung, who recently succeeded Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, the Dover Quartet catapulted to international stardom in 2013 following a sweep of the Banff International String Quartet Competition, winning not only the grand prize but all three special prizes.
Only five years previous to that, at the Curtis Institute, Link and Lee played in one ensemble together, while Pajaro-van de Stadt and Shaw did the same in another. At one point, all four students were available at the same time and felt the need to play together, Link said.
“Immediately, we just felt like a lot of stuff clicked,” he said.
Link recalls Schmuel Ashkenasi, a member of the violin faculty at the Curtis Institute, telling the four of them after listening to them, “You guys should really consider getting married.”
“He meant as a quartet!” Shaw explained.
Their success has led to them becoming one of the most in-demand ensembles in the world, performing up to 150 concerts per year.
First on the program for the Hilo concert is William Grant Still’s Lyric Quartette, which is subtitled, “Musical Portraits of Three Friends.”
A self-taught multi-instrumentalist, Still realized his desire to develop and refine a African-American classical musical voice. He and his compositions broke several color barriers in the 1930s and ’40s.
The second piece in the program, Beethoven’s Grosse Fuge (Grand Fugue) was initially regarded by many as incomprehensible. However, critical opinion of the work has risen steadily since the early 20th century, and it is now considered among Beethoven’s greatest achievements.
The concert will conclude with Felix Mendelssohn’s Opus 44 No. 3 string quartet. Completed in 1838, its second movement is one of the playful scherzos for which Mendelssohn is famous.
Tickets for the Nov. 15 concert are $25 (general), $20 (60-plus), and $10 (students) and are available at The Most Irresistible Shop and Music Exchange. Phone orders also can be made through the UH-Hilo Performing Arts Center Box Office. Remaining tickets will be available at the door after 6:45 p.m.