Bergamot Quartet

This is a recording of their live performance on March 29, 2012.

 Ledah Finck and Sarah Thomas, violins; Amy Tan, viola; and Irène Han, cello

Program

Paul Wiancko: Ode on a Broken Loom
Tanner Porter: Switchback
Jessie Montgomery: Source Code
György Ligeti: String Quartet No. 1, "Metamorphoses nocturnes"

The Bergamot Quartet is fueled by a passion for exploring and advocating for the music of living composers. Founded in Baltimore in 2016, Bergamot Quartet is based in New York City and is currently the Graduate String Quartet in Residence at the Mannes School of Music. Although most of our 2020-2021 season has been impacted by COVID-19, we strongly believe in the creation of art and amplification of voices during this cultural watershed moment more than ever. We are thankful for the opportunities to continue collaborating amongst ourselves, and with other artists, educators, and our communities, and have been excited to focus our energies on education, commissioning projects and recordings. Some of our current season’s engagements include being the virtual ensemble-in-residence for the Jr. Bach program at the Peabody Institute and for MATA Jr. 2020, and commissioning two new works in collaboration with the Towson University New Music Ensemble. 

Bergamot’s previous engagements include regular features on Baltimore’s Evolution Contemporary Music Series, playing George Crumb’s Black Angels everywhere from a living room in South Baltimore to the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, and performances on So Percussion’s Brooklyn Bound series, Peabody Library’s Music in the Stacks series, and Boulanger Initiative’s annual WoCo festival. They have completed programs at the Banff Center for the Arts, Quatuor Diotima’s Academy in France, and the Next Festival of Emerging Artists, and all studied at the Peabody Conservatory.

In expanding the limits of western classical music and the string quartet, Bergamot values partnership and collaboration as a vital element of their creative work. Previous collaborations include performances with flutist Claire Chase, and with MICA curatorial student Hannah Davis on a visual and sonic installation TRIADS: Arrangements in Sight and Sound. Bergamot’s commissioning projects have been supported by New Music USA for a new work by Ledah Finck in collaboration with percussionist Terry Sweeney, the Towson University New Music Ensemble, and more recently the Barlow Endowment in collaboration with Annika Socolofsky. Through their commitment to work with students and engaging with various communities, Bergamot has completed residencies in El Paso, Texas, with the El Paso Pro Musica, and lectures at the University of Baltimore, Towson University and the Peabody Institute. 

Streaming cost is $10
Donations are welcomed