NEWS

Karen gave the west coast premiere of Lembit Beecher’s cello concerto TELL ME AGAIN at the 2024 Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, with conductor Cristian Măcelaru. Read about the piece here! 

Karen gave the NYC premiere of Anna Clyne’s Shorthand for Cello and Orchestra with The Knights at a sold out Carnegie Hall on May 16, 2024. Critics praised her performance for its "tremendous heart, bringing joy and a captivating sound to the stage" (The Strad) as well as her “gorgeous singing tone” (Sequenza21) and  “deep expression” (Feast of Music). 

March 10, 2023: Karen’s composition Der Zor is commissioned and premiered by the Silkroad Ensemble, with performances at Carnegie Hall with Rhiannon Giddens, George Mason University, Christopher Newport University and Connecticut College. 

Oct-Nov 2022: Karen performs as soloist with The Knights throughout Germany and Denmark in the European premiere of Anna Clyne’s Shorthand for solo cello and orchestra! With performances at Tonhalle Düsseldorf, Elbphilharmonie (Hamburg), NDR Sendesaal (Hannover), Alte Oper (Frankfurt), Berlin Konzerthaus, Köln Philharmonie, Die Glöcke (Bremen), Prinzregententheater (München), Musikkens hus (Aalborg) and Musikhuset Aarhus. This follows the release of Karen's world premiere recording of the work with The Knights, released on Avie Records as part of The Kreutzer Project.

ABOUT

Described as “radiant” and “expressive” (The New York Times) and “nothing less than gorgeous” (Memphis Commercial Appeal), cellist Karen Ouzounian creates music from a deeply personal place. An acclaimed soloist, chamber musician, collaborator and composer, she is the recipient of the S&R Foundation’s Washington Award and sought after for her open-hearted, vibrantly detailed and fiercely committed performances. An omnivorous musical spirit, she has premiered numerous works and collaborated with some of the finest musicians of our time, including Rhiannon Giddens, Augustin Hadelich and Kayhan Kalhor. 

At the heart of Karen’s artistic practice is her love of unusual collaborations and the development of adventurous new works. Her current and recent projects include the creation of an experimental theater work with acclaimed director Joanna Settle; the world premiere of Lembit Beecher’s cello concerto Tell Me Again with conductor Eric Jacobsen and the Orlando Philharmonic; the world premiere of Anna Clyne’s Shorthand for solo cello and strings with The Knights, which she toured as soloist with The Knights throughout Europe and the U.S. and released on Avie Records; the release of Kayhan Kalhor’s Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur for solo cello, kamancheh and tabla; the development, touring and recording of Osvaldo Golijov’s Falling Out of Time; the commissioning of a new piece for cello/voice, Bring Your Own Garden Party, by Christina Courtin; and the digital world premiere of Beecher’s A Year to the Day, filmed for The Violin Channel with Augustin Hadelich and Nicholas Phan. Additional recent and upcoming appearances include concertos with the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Sarasota Festival Orchestra, Greater Bridgeport Symphony, and Philharmonic Orchestra of Santiago, Chile, in repertoire ranging from the Elgar Cello Concerto to John Adams’s Absolute Jest. Her evening-length video work In Motion, an exploration of heritage, family history and migration through interviews, her own compositions, and collaborations with visual artists Kevork Mourad and Nomi Sasaki and composer-percussionist Haruka Fujii, was presented by BroadBand. Recent compositions include works for the Silkroad Ensemble, Noe Music, and the upcoming premiere of DEAR MOUNTAINS for chorus, solo cello, oud and percussion, co-composed with Lembit Beecher and commissioned by Cantori New York.

Dedicated to the art of chamber music, Karen was a founding member of the Aizuri Quartet for eleven years, during which time the ensemble was awarded major chamber music prizes on three continents, including Chamber Music America’s Cleveland Quartet Award, the Grand Prize at the M-Prize Chamber Arts Competition, the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition and the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition, and served as the MetLiveArts String Quartet-in-Residence at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Quartet’s debut album, Blueprinting, featuring new works written for the Aizuri Quartet by five American composers, was released by New Amsterdam Records to critical acclaim (“In a word, stunning” - I Care If You Listen), nominated for a GRAMMY Award, and named one of NPR Music’s Best Classical Albums. 

Karen performs around the globe as a member of the Silkroad Ensemble, the GRAMMY Award-winning group founded by cellist Yo-Yo Ma in 2000 that engages cross-cultural collaboration and understanding. Recent tours with the Silkroad Ensemble include Uplifted Voices, which included the world premiere of her composition Der Zor and appeared at Carnegie Hall, American Railroad, Phoenix Rising, and Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad’s Home Within. She has toured with Musicians from Marlboro, appeared at the Ravinia, Caramoor and Ojai festivals, performed as guest principal of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and is a member of the Brooklyn-based chamber collective The Knights. 

Passionate about nurturing the next generation of artists, Karen has worked with cello, chamber music and composition students at USC, NYU, Oberlin, the Royal Conservatory of Music and Glenn Gould School in Toronto, the Hartt School, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln; taught extensively at the collegiate and high school levels with the Silkroad Ensemble and Aizuri Quartet, and served as a mentor in The Juilliard School’s Mentoring Program. Born to Armenian parents in Toronto, Karen holds Master of Music and Bachelor of Music degrees from Juilliard, where she was a student of Timothy Eddy, and a Post-Baccalaureate Diploma from The Curtis Institute of Music. She resides in New York City with her husband, composer and animator Lembit Beecher.  

(716 words, current as of March 2024; for more information visit www.karenouzounian.com)

Karen Ouzounian Short Bio 

Described as “radiant” and “expressive” (The New York Times) and “nothing less than gorgeous” (Memphis Commercial Appeal), cellist Karen Ouzounian creates music from a deeply personal place. An acclaimed soloist, chamber musician, collaborator and composer, she is the recipient of the S&R Foundation’s Washington Award and sought after for her open-hearted, vibrantly detailed and fiercely committed performances. Recent projects include the creation of an experimental theater work with director Joanna Settle; the world premiere of Lembit Beecher’s cello concerto Tell Me Again with the Orlando Philharmonic; the world premiere of Anna Clyne’s Shorthand for solo cello and strings with The Knights, which she toured as soloist with The Knights throughout Europe and the U.S. and released on Avie Records; the release of Kayhan Kalhor’s Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur for solo cello, kamancheh and tabla; the development, touring and recording of Osvaldo Golijov’s Falling Out of Time; and the digital world premiere of Beecher’s A Year to the Day, filmed for The Violin Channel with Augustin Hadelich and Nicholas Phan. Additional recent and upcoming appearances include concertos with the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Sarasota Festival Orchestra, Greater Bridgeport Symphony, and Philharmonic Orchestra of Santiago, Chile, in repertoire ranging from the Elgar Cello Concerto to John Adams’s Absolute Jest. 

Dedicated to the art of chamber music, she was a founding member of the Aizuri Quartet for eleven years, during which time the ensemble was awarded major chamber music prizes on three continents and earned a GRAMMY nomination. She has toured with Musicians from Marlboro, appeared at the Ravinia, Caramoor and Ojai festivals, and performs regularly as a member of the Silkroad Ensemble and The Knights. Her evening-length video work In Motion, an exploration of heritage, family history and migration through interviews, her own compositions, and collaborations with visual artists Kevork Mourad and Nomi Sasaki and composer-percussionist Haruka Fujii, was presented by BroadBand. Recent compositions include works for the Silkroad Ensemble, Noe Music, and the upcoming premiere of DEAR MOUNTAINS for chorus, solo cello, oud and percussion, co-composed with Lembit Beecher and commissioned by Cantori New York.

(356 words, current as of March 2024; for more information, please visit www.karenouzounian.com)

Download bios


  2024

Jan 13-14, 2024
Noe Music with Kinan Azmeh and Haruka Fujii
San Francisco, CA

Jan 20, 2024
“Only Voice Remain” at National Sawdust
Brooklyn, NYC

Feb 1-4, 2024
Guest Principal, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
St. Paul, MN

Feb 23, 2024
Tertulia Chamber Music with Yoonah Kim and Henry Kramer
NYC

March 15, 2024
Cello Masterclass at NYU
NYC

March 24, 2024
Big Ears Festival with Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens
Knoxville, TN

March 27, 2024
Composition Seminar at Hartt School of Music
University of Hartford, CT

April 22, 2024
Silkroad Ensemble “Uplifted Voices” tour, including my composition “Der Zor”
Fayetteville, AR

April 24, 2024
Silkroad Ensemble “Uplifted Voices”
West Virginia University

April 25, 2024
Cello Masterclass at Oberlin College and Conservatory
Oberlin, OH

April 26, 2024
Silkroad Ensemble “Uplifted Voices”
Oberlin College and Conservatory’

May 3, 2024
Soloist with The Knights and Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Anna Clyne’s “Shorthand” for Cello and String Orchestra
Worcester, MA

May 16, 2024
Soloist with The Knights and Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Anna Clyne’s “Shorthand” for Cello and String Orchestra
Carnegie Hall, NYC

June 6, 2024
Lembit Beecher’s “Looking at Spring”
Brooklyn Art Song Society, NYC

June 9, 2024
Chamber Music with The Knights’ Colin Jacobsen and Steve Beck
Works by Ravel, Lembit Beecher, Ilari Kaila
Garrison, NY

June 17-22, 2024
Artist Faculty at Sarasota Music Festival
Sarasota, FL

June 20, 2024
Ilari Kaila’s “Hum and Drum”
Sarasota Music Festival, Sarasota, FL

June 22, 2024
Soloist with Sarasota Festival Orchestra and Jeffrey Kahane, conductor
Anna Clyne’s “Shorthand” for Cello and String Orchestra
Sarasota, FL

August 3, 2024
Soloist with Cabrillo Festival Orchestra and Cristian Măcelaru, conductor
Lembit Beecher’s “Tell Me Again” for Cello and Orchestra, West Coast premiere
Santa Cruz, CA

August 19-23, 2024
Artist Faculty at Prairie Cello Institute
Regina, SK, Canada

August 20, 2024
Recital in collaboration with Lembit Beecher
Prairie Cello Festival, Regina, SK, Canada

Sept 11, 2024
SweetWater Music Festival
Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada 
Works by Caroline Shaw and Rossini 

Sept 13, 2024
SweetWater Music Festival
Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada 
Works by Hindemith, Lembit Beecher and R. Schumann  

Sept 14, 2024
SweetWater Music Festival
Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada 
Works by Grieg and Handel   

Sept 15, 2024
SweetWater Music Festival
Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada 
Soloist in Anna Clyne's Shorthand (Canadian Premiere) + works by Tchaikovsky and Mozart

Oct 4, 2024
Music on the Strait
Field Arts Hall, Port Angeles, WA 
J.S. Bach's Goldberg Variations with Richard O'Neill and James Garlick + works by Lembit Beecher and Charles Aznavour 

Nov 14, 2024
Women’s Musical Club of Toronto
Toronto, Canada
Works by J.S. Bach, Lembit Beecher, Charles Aznavour and Brahms with Julian Rachlin, Sarah McElravy and Sheng Cai 

Nov 22-23. 2024
World Premiere of DEAR MOUNTAINS, co-composed with Lembit Beecher
For Chorus, Solo Cello, Oud and Percussion
Commissioned by Cantori New York, Mark Shapiro conductor   
With Ara Dinkjian, oud and Philip Mayer, percussion
Church of the Holy Apostles | 296 9th Ave, New York City | 8pm 

Dec 8, 2024
The Knights at Peoples' Symphony Concerts
Town Hall, NYC
Works by Allison Loggins-Hull and Mozart 

 

 

 2023

January 27, 2023
Silkroad Ensemble
Uplifted Voices, including world premiere of Karen Ouzounian’s Der Zor
Connecticut College, New London, CT

January 29, 2023
Silkroad Ensemble
Uplifted Voices, including Karen Ouzounian’s Der Zor
George Mason University, Fairfax, VA

January 31, 2023
Silkroad Ensemble
Uplifted Voices, including Karen Ouzounian’s Der Zor
Christopher Newport University, Newport News, VA

February 12, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
Sunrise: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Karen Ouzounian), Béla Bartók, Tanya Tagaq, Joseph Haydn
Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, PA

February 19, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
The Art of Translation: works by Lembit Beecher, Hannah Kendall, Paul Wiancko and Franz Schubert
Krannert Center, Urbana, IL

February 23, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Grieg and Fjola Evans (world premiere of Moss for string quintet)
Womens Musical Club of Toronto, Walter Hall, Toronto, Canada

February 24, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Lembit Beecher, Hannah Kendall, Paul Wiancko, Franz Schubert (arr. Janina Norpoth) and Joseph Haydn
Ottawa Chamberfest, Canada 

February 26, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
Impromptu Classical Concerts
Key West, FL

March 4, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
The Art of Translation: works by Lembit Beecher, Hannah Kendall, Paul Wiancko and Franz Schubert
Texas Performing Arts, Austin, TX

March 7, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
The Art of Translation: works by Lembit Beecher, Hannah Kendall, Paul Wiancko and Franz Schubert
Ford Center at Ole Miss, Oxford, MS

March 10, 2023
Rhiannon Giddens and Silkroad Ensemble 
Uplifted Voices, including Karen Ouzounian’s Der Zor
Carnegie Hall, NYC

March 16, 2023
Aizuri Quartet and Kinan Azmeh 
Music and Migration: works by Rhiannon Giddens, Layale Chaker (world premiere of Matrescence), Kinan Azmeh, Komitas, Wang Lu, Michi Wiancko, Paquito D’Rivera
Armstrong Auditorium, Edmond, OK 

March 19, 2023
Aizuri Quartet and Kinan Azmeh 
Music and Migration: works by Rhiannon Giddens, Layale Chaker, Kinan Azmeh, Komitas, Wang Lu, Michi Wiancko, Paquito D’Rivera
Civic Music Association, Des Moines, IA

March 27, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
The Art of Translation: works by Lembit Beecher, Hannah Kendall, Paul Wiancko and Franz Schubert
New Orleans Friends of Music
Tulane University, New Orleans, LA

March 30, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
The Art of Translation: works by Lembit Beecher, Hannah Kendall, Paul Wiancko and Franz Schubert
University of Hartford, CT

April 1, 2023
Maeve Gilchrist with Aizuri Quartet and Kyle Sanna
Big Ears Festival 
Knoxville, TN

April 15, 2023
Osvaldo Golijov’s Falling Out of Time 
Da Camera of Houston
Houston, TX

April 16, 2023
Osvaldo Golijov’s Falling Out of Time 
Da Camera of Houston
Houston, TX

April 20, 2023
Osvaldo Golijov’s Falling Out of Time
Carolina Performing Arts
Chapel Hill, NC

April 30, 2023
Osvaldo Golijov’s Falling Out of Time
Celebrity Series of Boston
Boston, MA

May 3, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
Sunrise: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Karen Ouzounian), Béla Bartók, Tanya Tagaq, Joseph Haydn
Celebrity Series of Boston
Boston, MA

May 12, 2023
Soloist with Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Kayhan Kalhor’s Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur
With Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh; Sandeep Das, tabla; Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Norfolk, VA

May 13, 2023
Soloist with Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Kayhan Kalhor’s Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur
With Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh; Sandeep Das, tabla; Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Newport News, VA

May 14, 2023
Soloist with Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Kayhan Kalhor’s Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur
With Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh; Sandeep Das, tabla; Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Virginia Beach, VA

June 5-11, 2023
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

June 27, 2023
The Knights at Naumburg Bandshell
Central Park, NYC

June 29, 2023
The Knights at Tanglewood’s Ozawa hall 
Lenox, MA

July 3, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
Bowdoin International Music Festival
Brunswick, ME

July 7, 2023
Aizuri Quartet
Newport Classical 
Newport, RI

July 10-15, 2023
Residency with Lembit Beecher
Avaloch Farm Music Institute 
Boscawen, NH

July 20, 2023
Tribute to Miriam Fried 
With Ariel Quartet, Henry Kramer, Ayano Ninomiya
Ravinia Festival, Highland Park, IL

July 25-30, 2023
Music in the Vineyards
Napa, CA

August 31, 2023
The Knights, soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand
Manchester Music Festival, Manchester, VT

September 2, 2023
The Knights 
Clark Art Institute 
Williamstown, MA

Sept 15-18, 2023
Silkroad Ensemble American Railroad Residency 
Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, Fairfield, CT 

Sept 28-Oct 17, 2023
Residency in Paris, France 

Oct 25, 2023 @7:30pm
The Knights and Chris Thile
Troy Savings Bank Hall, Troy, NY

Oct 26, 2023 @7:30pm
The Knights and Chris Thile
Carnegie Hall, Zankel, NYC

Oct 27, 2023 @8pm 
The Knights and Chris Thile
Music Worcester, Mechanics Hall, Worcester, MA

Oct 28, 2023
The Knights residency at Cornell University, Lincoln Hall
Ithaca, NY

Oct 29, 2023 @3pm 
The Knights and Chris Thile
Bailey Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

Nov 5, 2023 @7pm 
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” world premiere
With Rhiannon Giddens, Wu Man, Sandeep Das, Haruka Fujii, Kaoru Watanabe, Mazz Swift, Michi Wiancko, Shawn Conley, Francesco Turrisi, Niwel Tsumbu, Pura Fé Crescioni and Yazhi Guo; Projections by Camilla Tassi 
George Mason University Center for the Arts, Fairfax, VA

Nov 6, 2023
Residency at George Mason University with Silkroad Ensemble 
Fairfax, VA

Nov 8, 2023
Residency at UC Santa Barbara with Silkroad Ensemble
Santa Barbara, CA

Nov 9, 2023 @8pm
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at Arts & Lectures UC Santa Barbara
The Granada Theatre, Santa Barbara, CA

Nov 10, 2023 @7:30pm 
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at La Jolla Music Society
Balboa Theater, San Diego, CA

Nov 11, 2023 @8pm
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at Philharmonic Society 
Soka Performing Arts Center, Aliso Viejo, CA

Nov 12, 2023 @7pm
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at The Soraya
Northridge, CA

Nov 14, 2023
Residency at Stanford University with Silkroad Ensemble 
Stanford, CA

Nov 15, 2023 @7:30pm 
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at Stanford Live
Bing Concert Hall, Stanford University
Stanford, CA

Nov 16, 2023 @7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at Mondavi Center
Davis, CA

Nov 17, 2023 @8pm 
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at Cal Performances
Zellerbach Hall, Berkeley, CA

Nov 18, 2023 @7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens 
“American Railroad” at Green Music Center
Sonoma, CA

Dec 1, 2023 
Chamber coaching at Glenn Gould School and Cello Masterclasses at Taylor Academy 
Royal Conservatory of Music
Toronto, Canada

Dec 8-20, 2023 
Creative Workshop with theater director Joanna Settle and composer Lembit Beecher 
Abu Dhabi, UAE

 

2022

January 16, 2022 at 7:00pm
Aizuri Quartet
What’s Past is Prologue: works by Hildegard von Bingen, Barbara Strozzi, Nina Young, Eleanor Alberga, and Robert Schumann,
Evergreen Woods, North Branford, CT

January 19, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Anthony McGill and Demarre McGill
works by Amy Beach, David Ludwig, Lembit Beecher, and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Philadelphia, PA

January 22, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
What’s Past is Prologue: works by Hildegard von Bingen, Barbara Strozzi, Nina Young, Eleanor Alberga, and Robert Schumann,
Central Texas Orchestral Society, Temple, TX

January 24, 2022 at 7:00pm
Aizuri Quartet
What’s Past is Prologue: works by Hildegard von Bingen, Barbara Strozzi, Nina Young, Gabriella Smith, Rhiannon Giddens, and Eleanor Alberga
Lincoln Friends of Chamber Music, Lincoln, NE

February 6, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
works by Hildegard von Bingen, Barbara Strozzi, Evan Premo, and Eleanor Alberga
Lyrica Chamber Music, New Jersey

March 12, 2022 at 3:00pm
Aizuri Quartet with Eddie Barbash and Sam Reider
American in Paris: Ravel and Gershwin
People’s Symphony Concerts, New York, NY

March 20, 2022 at 4:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
What’s Past is Prologue: works by Hildegard von Bingen, Nina Young, Gabriella Smith, Rhiannon Giddens, and Eleanor Alberga
San Antonio Chamber Music Society, San Antonio, TX

March 25, 2022 at 7:00pm
Aizuri Quartet with Emi Ferguson
Emi Ferguson: I Leapt Across Oceans
The Greene Space, New York, NY

March 27, 2022 at 3:00pm
Aizuri Quartet
What’s Past is Prologue: works by Hildegard von Bingen, Barbara Strozzi, Nina Young, Gabriella Smith, Rhiannon Giddens, and Eleanor Alberga
Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY

April 2, 2022 at 8:00pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Home Within by Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad
Campbell Hall, Santa Barbara, CA

April 2, 2022 at 8:00pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Home Within by Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad
The Soraya, Northridge, CA

April 3, 2022 at 7:00pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Home Within by Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad
The Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, La Jolla, CA

April 6, 2022 at 7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Home Within by Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad
Bing Concert Hall, Stanford, CA

April 8, 2022 at 8:00pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Home Within by Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad
Indiana University, Bloomington, IN

April 9, 2022 at 8:00pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Home Within by Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad
Loeb Playhouse, West Lafayette, IN

April 11, 2022 at 7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Home Within by Kinan Azmeh and Kevork Mourad
Ohio University, Athens, OH

April 15, 2022 at 7:30pm
Wilco, feat. The Aizuri Quartet
20th Anniversary Tour of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
United Palace in New York, NY

April 16, 2022 at 7:30pm
Wilco, feat. The Aizuri Quartet
20th Anniversary Tour of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
United Palace in New York, NY

April 17, 2022 at 7:30pm
Wilco, feat. The Aizuri Quartet
20th Anniversary Tour of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
United Palace in New York, NY

April 19, 2022 at 7:30pm
Wilco, feat. The Aizuri Quartet
20th Anniversary Tour of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
United Palace in New York, NY

April 20, 2022 at 7:30pm
Wilco, feat. The Aizuri Quartet
20th Anniversary Tour of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
United Palace in New York, NY

May 4, 2022 at 7:30pm
Musicians from the Silkroad Ensemble
Falling Out of Time by Osvaldo Golijov
Hopkins Center for the Arts, Dartmouth, NH

May 6, 2022 at 7:30pm
Musicians from the Silkroad Ensemble
Falling Out of Time by Osvaldo Golijov
Carnegie Hall, New York, NY

June 10, 2022 at 4:30pm
Recording Session with Nicholas Phan, Augustin Hadelich, and Orion Weiss
A Year to the Day, music by Lembit Beecher, lyrics by Mark Campbell
for streaming release on The Violin Channel

June 12, 2022 at 4:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Song Emerging: works by Robert Schumann, Shawn Jaeger, and the Aizuri Songbook
Redbank Chamber Music Society, Redbank NJ

June 16, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Absolute Jest for string quartet and orchestra, by John Adams

June 17, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Absolute Jest for string quartet and orchestra, by John Adams

June 18, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Absolute Jest for string quartet and orchestra, by John Adams

June 19, 2022 at 2:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Absolute Jest for string quartet and orchestra, by John Adams

June 28, 2022 at 7:00pm
Aizuri Quartet
Song Emerging: works by Robert Schumann, Shawn Jaeger, and the Aizuri Songbook
Green Lake Festival of Music, Green Lake, WI

July 5, 2022 at 7:00pm
Aizuri Quartet with Harpist Maeve Gilchrist
The Harpweaver: works by Maeve Gilchrist
An Appalachian Summer Festival, Boone, NC

July 7, 2022 at 7:00pm
Aizuri Quartet
Song Emerging: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Ouzounian), Robert Schumann, Tanya Tagaq, and Joseph Haydn.  
Meadowmount School of Music, Westport, NY

July 16, 2022 at 8:00pm
Silkroad Ensemble 
Phoenix Rising with Rhiannon Giddens, Wu Man, Sandeep Das, Kojiro Umezaki, Maeve Gilchrist, Francesco Turrisi, Haruka Fujii, Joseph Gramley, Kaoru Watanabe, Reylon Yount, Mazz Swift, Mario Gotoh and Jeff Beecher 
Caramoor, Katonah, NY 
 
July 19, 2022 at 7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble 
The Hop, Hanover, NH 
 
July 22, 2022
Silkroad Ensemble 
Newport Folk Festival, Fort Adams State Park, Newport, RI
 
July 23, 2022 at 8:00pm
New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark, NJ
 
July 24, 2022 at 7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble 
Wolf Trap, Vienna, VA 
 
July 27, 2022 at 7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble   
Music Worcester at Indian Ranch, Webster, MA
 
July 28, 2022 at 7:30pm
Silkroad Ensemble 
Tangelwood, Lenox, MA 
 
July 30, 2022 at 8:00pm
Silkroad Ensemble 
Skaneateles Festival, Skaneateles, NY 
 
August 5, 2002 at 7:30pm 
Music in the Vineyards 
With Tessa Lark, Susie Park, Daria Adams, Mark Holloway, Rebecca Young, Brandon Vamos and John Novacek 
Silverado Vineyards, Napa, CA
 
August 6, 2002 at 5:00pm 
Music in the Vineyards
With Simin Ganatra, Austin Hartman, Tessa Lark, Susie Park, Mark Holloway, Rebecca Found, Brandon Vamos, John Novacek 
Silverado Vineyards, Napa, CA
 
August 7, 2002 at 5:00pm 
Music in the Vineyards
Silverado Vineyards, Napa, CA

August 11, 2022 at 8:00pm
The Knights
Knights at the Movies
Skaneateles Festival, Skaneateles, NY

August 12, 2022 at 8:00pm
The Knights
works by Vivaldi, Dvořák, Finzi, Bach and Sarasate
Skaneateles Festival, Skaneateles, NY

August 13, 2022 at 8:00pm
The Knights feat. Gil Shaham and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Skaneateles Festival, Skaneateles, NY

September 11, 2022 at 4:00pm
The Knights feat. Colin Jacobsen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Viet Cuong, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Candelight Concert Society, Columbia, MD

September 13, 2022 at 8:00pm
The Knights feat. Colin Jacobsen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Ravinia Festival, Highland Park, IL

September 18, 2022 at 2:00pm
Aizuri Quartet
Dallas Chamber Music Society, Dallas, TX

September 21, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Auburn University, Auburn, AL

September 23, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Tippet Rise, Fishtail, MT

September 30, 2022 at 8:00pm
Aizuri Quartet
Sunrise: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Karen Ouzounian), Bela Bartok, Tanya Tagaq, Joseph Haydn
Music@Amherst, Amherst, MA

October 4, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Sunrise: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Karen Ouzounian), Bela Bartok, Tanya Tagaq, Joseph Haydn
Brevard Music Center, Brevard, NC

October 6, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Sunrise: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Karen Ouzounian), Bela Bartok, Tanya Tagaq, Joseph Haydn
Center for Performing Arts at Penn State, University Park, PA

October 7, 2022 at 7:00pm
Nicholas Phan, Augustin Hadelich, Karen Ouzounian and Orion Weiss
A Year to the Day, a song cycle with music by Lembit Beecher and lyrics by Mark Campbell
Video premiere on theviolinchannel.com

October 11, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Sunrise: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Karen Ouzounian), Bela Bartok, Tanya Tagaq, Joseph Haydn
Shenandoah University, Winchester, VA

October 13, 2022 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Sunrise: works by Clara Schumann (arr. Karen Ouzounian), Bela Bartok, Tanya Tagaq, Joseph Haydn
Carnegie Hall Presents, New York, NY

October 15, 2022 at 7:30pm
The Knights feat. Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by J.S. Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven
Wethersfield Estate and Garden, Amenia, NY

October 24, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Tonhalle, Dusseldorf, Germany

October 25, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Elbphilharmonie, Hamburg, Germany

October 26, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Elbphilharmonie, Hamburg, Germany

October 28, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Musikkens hus, Aalborg, Denmark

October 29, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Musikhuset Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark

October 31, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
NDR Sendesaal, Hannover, Germany

November 1, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Alte Oper, Frankfurt, Germany

November 2, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Konzerthaus, Berlin, Germany

November 3, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Philharmonic, Cologne, Germany

November 4, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Glocke, Bremen, Germany

November 6, 2022
The Knights European Tour feat. Ray Chen and Karen Ouzounian
The Kreutzer Project: soloist in Anna Clyne’s Shorthand, with additional works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leoš Janáček, and Colin Jacobsen
Prinzregententheater, Munich, Germany 

November 16, 2022 at 7:30pm 
Aizuri Quartet
Song Emerging: works by Robert Schumann, Tanya Tagaq, and the Aizuri Songbook
Apex Concerts Reno, Reno, NV

November 18, 2022  
Aizuri Quartet
Song Emerging: works by Robert Schumann, Tanya Tagaq, and the Aizuri Songbook
The Greene Space, NYC

November 20, 2022  
Aizuri Quartet
Evergreen Woods, North Branford, CT 

December 10, 2022 at 7:30pm 
Aizuri Quartet
Song Emerging: works by Robert Schumann, Tanya Tagaq, and the Aizuri Songbook
Ravinia Festival, Highland Park, IL

December 17, 2022 at 8:00pm 
Aizuri Quartet
Library of Congress, Washington, DC

 

 

2018-2019 Season

 

July 15, 2018 at 4pm
Caramoor Alumni “Chamber Feast”
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

July 21, 2018 at 6pm
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Gabriella Smith, Mozart, Bartok, Komitas
Antenna Cloud Farm, Gill, MA

July 22, 2018 at 4pm
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Gabriella Smith, Mozart, Bartok, Komitas
Antenna Cloud Farm, Gill, MA

July 26, 2018 at 7:30pm
Methow Valley Chamber Music Festival
Works by Bartok and Mendelssohn
Signal Hill Ranch, Methow Valley, WA

July 28, 2018 at 7:30pm
Methow Valley Chamber Music Festival
Works by Borodin, Mozart, and chamber version of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 15 (arr. Viktor Derevianko) for Violin, Cello, Piano (and celesta), and Three Percussionists
Signal Hill Ranch, Methow Valley, WA

August 26, 2018 at 9:15pm
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Mozart, Bartok, Paul Wiancko
Paesaggi Musicali Toscani, San Quirico d’Orcia, Italy

August 31, 2018 at 8:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Mozart, Bartok, Paul Wiancko
Morellino Classica Festival Internazionale di Scansano, Italy

September 11, 2018 at 7:30pm
A Far Cry with Simone Dinnerstein
Works by J.S. Bach and Philip Glass
The Lensic Performing Arts Center, Santa Fe, NM

September 14, 2018 at 8pm
A Far Cry with Simone Dinnerstein
Works by J.S. Bach and Philip Glass
Soka University, Aliso Viejo, CA

September 26, 2018 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet “Blueprinting” Album Release Show
Works by Gabriella Smith, Caroline Shaw, Yevgeniy Sharlat, Paul Wiancko
University of New Orleans
New Orleans, LA

September 28, 2018 at 7pm
Marlboro Music
With Catherine Cho, Pamela Frank, Harumi Rhodes, Scott St. John, Ulrich Eichenauer, Melissa Reardon, Julia Lichten
Works by Webern, Mendelssohn
University of Pennsylvania Kislak Center, Philadelphia, PA

 

October 10, 11, 12 and 13, 2018
Silkroad Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group
“Layla and Majnun”
Melbourne International Festival
Melbourne, Australia

October 15, 2018 at 7pm
Silkroad Ensemble
Melbourne International Festival
Melbourne, Australia

October 20, 2018 at 8pm
Aizuri Quartet “Blueprinting” Album Release Show
Works by Gabriella Smith, Caroline Shaw, Yevgeniy Sharlat, Paul Wiancko
Bowerbird @ University Lutheran, Philadelphia, PA

October 22-25, 2018
Aizuri Quartet
Residency at University of Michigan School of Music, Theater and Dance
Ann Arbor, MI

October 26, 2018 at 8pm
Aizuri Quartet M-Prize Grand Prize Recital
Works by Komitas, Bartok, Caroline Shaw, Paul Wiancko
University Musical Society, University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, MI

October 28, 2018 at 4pm
Aizuri Quartet “Blueprinting” Album Release Show
Works by Gabriella Smith, Caroline Shaw, Yevgeniy Sharlat, Lembit Beecher, Paul Wiancko
National Sawdust, Brooklyn, NY

October 30, 2018 at 7pm
Chamber Music on Main
With Tessa Lark, Ayane Kozasa, Andrew Armstrong
Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia, SC

November 3, 2018 at 8pm
Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra
Solo Appearance with Kayhan Kalhor and Sandeep Das, conducted by Eric Jacobsen
“Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur” by Kayhan Kalhor, arr. Michael Atkinson
Bob Carr Theater, Orlando, FL

November 8, 2018 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Mary Bonhag, soprano
Scrag Mountain Music
Works by Evan Premo, Gabriella Smith, Komitas, Schoenberg
Bread and Butter Farm, Shelburne, VT

November 9, 2018 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Mary Bonhag, soprano
Scrag Mountain Music
Works by Evan Premo, Gabriella Smith, Komitas, Schoenberg
Unitarian Church of Montpelier, Montpelier, VT

November 10, 2018 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Mary Bonhag, soprano
Scrag Mountain Music
Works by Evan Premo, Gabriella Smith, Komitas, Schoenberg
Warren United Church, Warren, VT

November 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17, 2018
Silkroad Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group
“Layla and Majnun”
Sadler’s Wells, London, England

November 19-22, 2018
Aizuri Quartet with Leela Subramaniam and Lucy Dhegrae
Workshop of Donnacha Dennehy’s "Custom of the Coast"
The Lab, Dublin, Ireland

November 26, 2018
Aizuri Quartet  
String Quartet Composition Residency
Ramapo College, NJ

November 27, 2018 at 8pm
Aizuri Quartet at Princeton Sound Kitchen
New works by graduate students Tom Morrison, Connor Way, Anna Meadors, Pascal Le Boeuf, Matt McBane, and faculty composer Donnacha Dennehy
Taplin Auditorium, Princeton University, NJ

December 1-5, 2018
Silkroad Ensemble
Residency at Rice University
Houston, TX

December 9-12, 2018
Silkroad Ensemble
Residency at The Juilliard School
New York, NY

December 17, 2018 at 8pm
Aizuri Quartet with Isabel Gleicher and Adrienne Kim
MATA Continued: Music by Ilari Kaila
Shapeshifter Lab, Brooklyn, NY

December 18-21, 2018
Aizuri Quartet with Isabel Gleicher and Adrienne Kim
Recording the music of Ilari Kaila
Academy of Arts and Letters, New York, NY

January 9, 2019 at 7pm
A Far Cry with Pamela Frank
Special Event at Harvard Ed Portal
Allston, MA

January 11, 2019 at 8pm
A Far Cry with Pamela Frank
Works by Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, Mozart, Haydn
Jordan Hall, Boston, MA

January 18, 2019 at 2:30pm
Aizuri Quartet at Chamber Music America 2019 National Conference
Chamber Music America Showcase
Works by Komitas, Bartok, Mozart, Gabriella Smith
Westin New York at Times Square, NYC

January 20, 2019 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet at Evergreen Woods
North Branford, CT

January 21-24, 2019
Silkroad Ensemble
Residency at College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, MA

January 26, 2019 at 8pm
Aizuri Quartet at American Music Festival
Works by Beethoven, Caroline Shaw, Mozart, Gabriella Smith
Morehead City, NC

January 27, 2019 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet at Chamber Music Wilmington
Works by Beethoven, Caroline Shaw, Mozart, Gabriella Smith
Beckwith Recital Hall, University of North Carolina-Wilmington
Wilmington, NC

The Knights with Avi Avital: Europe Tour
Works by Rebel, Thomas Adès, Rameau, J.S. Bach, Beethoven, Pärt, Colin Jacobsen, Siamak Aghaei, Vivaldi, Boccherini, Komitas, Bloch, Brumley

February 8, 2019
Filharmonia Szczecin
Szczecin, Poland

February 10, 2019
Konzerthaus
Berlin, Germany

February 11, 2019
Rudolf Oetker Hall
Bielefeld, Germany

February 12, 2019
Tonhalle Dusseldorf
Dusseldorf, Germany

February 13, 2019
Kongresshaus Stadthalle
Heidelberg, Germany

February 16, 2019
NDR Grosser Sendeshaal
Hannover, Germany

February 17, 2019
Staatstheater
Darmstadt, Germany

February 19, 2019
Elbphilharmonie
Hamburg, Germany

February 20, 2019
Elbphilharmonie
Hamburg, Germany

February 21, 2019
Musikverein
Vienna, Austria

February 22, 2019
Brucknerhaus
Linz, Austria

February 24, 2019
Graf Zeppelin Haus
Friedrichshafen, Germany

February 25, 2019
Konzertkirche
Schaffhausen, Switzerland

February 26, 2019
Tonhalle Mag
Zurich, Switzerland

March 9, 2019
Aizuri Quartet at Boulanger Initiative WOCO Launch Festival
Blind Whino SW Arts Club, Washington, DC

March 11, 2019
Aizuri Quartet with James Austin Smith
Works by Hildegard von Bingen, Britten, Sky Macklay, Mozart
Tertulia NYC

March 12, 2019 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet at Neighborhood Classics
Works by Hildegard von Bingen, Caroline Shaw, Katie Balch, Sky Macklay, Nina C. Young, Gabriella Smith
P.S. 321, Brooklyn, NY

March 16, 2019 at 7:30pm
IRIS Orchestra with Inon Barnatan
Works by Cowell, Haydn, Beethoven
Germantown Performing Arts Center, Germantown, TN

March 17, 2019 at 3pm
Aizuri Quartet and Inon Barnatan, presented by IRIS Orchestra
Dvorak Piano Quintet
Brooks Museum, Memphis, TN

March 22, 2019 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet and Mary Bonhag, soprano
Five Boroughs Music Festival
Works by Evan Premo, Komitas, Gabriella Smith, Schoenberg
Tenri Cultural Institute, NYC

March 29, 2019 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Intricate Machines”
Works by Katie Balch, Sky Macklay, Phil Taylor, Daniel Temkin, Nina C. Young
Laughlin Music Hall, Pittsburgh, PA

March 31, 2019 at 2pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Intricate Machines”
Works by Katie Balch, Sky Macklay, Phil Taylor, Daniel Temkin, Nina C. Young
Weis Center for the Arts, Lewisburg, PA

April 3, 2019 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Intricate Machines”
Works by Katie Balch, Sky Macklay, Phil Taylor, Daniel Temkin, Nina C. Young
Rotunda, Philadelphia, PA

April 5, 2019 at 8pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Intricate Machines”
Works by Katie Balch, Sky Macklay, Phil Taylor, Daniel Temkin, Nina C. Young
DiMenna Center, NYC

April 6, 2019 at 8pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Intricate Machines”
Works by Katie Balch, Sky Macklay, Phil Taylor, Daniel Temkin, Nina C. Young
Scholes Street Studio, Brooklyn, NY

April 12, 2019 at 8pm
A Far Cry presents “Gravity”
Works by Pärt, Xenakis, Kernis, Bartok, Golijov
Jordan Hall, Boston, MA

April 13, 2019 at 7:30pm
A Far Cry presents “Gravity”
Works by Pärt, Xenakis, Kernis, Bartok, Golijov
Merrimack College, North Andover, MA

April 14, 2019 at 3pm
A Far Cry presents “Focus: Beyond the Score with Gravity”
An up-close look at selections from Gravity
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Boston, MA

April 16, 2019 at 7:30pm
A Far Cry presents “Gravity”
Works by Pärt, Xenakis, Kernis, Bartok, Golijov
Yale University, New Haven, CT

April 17-21, 2019
Recording the chamber music of Tigran Mansurian
UC Los Angeles, CA

April 26, 2019 at 8pm
Silkroad Ensemble
World Premiere of “Heroes Take Their Stands”
Granada Theater, UC Santa Barbara, CA

April 28, 2019 at 7pm
Silkroad Ensemble performs “Heroes Take Their Stands”
Great Hall, California State University, Northridge, CA

April 30, 2019 at 8pm
Silkroad Ensemble performs “Heroes Take Their Stands”
Segerstrom Hall, Costa Mesa, CA

May 3, 2019 at 8pm
Silkroad Ensemble performs “Heroes Take Their Stands”
Zellerbach Hall, Berkeley, CA

May 5, 2019 at 4pm
Silkroad Ensemble performs “Heroes Take Their Stands”
Eisenhower Theater, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Washington, DC

May 9, 2019 at 7:30pm
Scrag Mountain Music presents “String Circle”
With Anna Elashvili, Yonah Zur, Margaret Dyer, Ayane Kozasa, Evan Premo, Mary Bonhag
Works by Brahms, Kenji Bunch, Evan Chambers, Sibelius
Bread & Butter Farm, Shelburne, VT

May 11, 2019 at 7:30pm
Scrag Mountain Music presents “String Circle”
With Anna Elashvili, Yonah Zur, Margaret Dyer, Ayane Kozasa, Evan Premo, Mary Bonhag
Works by Brahms, Kenji Bunch, Evan Chambers, Sibelius
Unitarian Church of Montpelier, Montpelier, VT

May 12, 2019 at 4pm
Scrag Mountain Music presents “String Circle”
With Anna Elashvili, Yonah Zur, Margaret Dyer, Ayane Kozasa, Evan Premo, Mary Bonhag
Works by Brahms, Kenji Bunch, Evan Chambers, Sibelius
Warren United Church, Warren, VT

May 17, 2019 at 4pm and 6:30pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Murasaki’s Moon”
A new chamber opera by Michi Wiancko, composer and Deborah Brevoort, librettist
A co-production of MetLiveArts and On Site Opera
Astor Court, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC

May 18, 2019 at 2pm and 6pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Murasaki’s Moon”
A new chamber opera by Michi Wiancko, composer and Deborah Brevoort, librettist
A co-production of MetLiveArts and On Site Opera
Astor Court, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC

May 19, 2019 at 11am and 3pm
Aizuri Quartet performs “Murasaki’s Moon”
A new chamber opera by Michi Wiancko, composer and Deborah Brevoort, librettist
A co-production of MetLiveArts and On Site Opera
Astor Court, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC

June 11, 2019 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet at Chamber Music Society of Minnesota
Sundin Music Hall, St. Paul, MN

 

 

 

2018 

January 6-11, 2018
Aizuri Quartet recording at Oktaven Audio
Debut album on New Amsterdam Records, coming Fall 2018

Friday January 19, 2018 at 8pm
A Far Cry and Nicholas Phan perform “Albion”
Works by Purcell, Locke, Lanier, Vaughan-Williams and Britten
Jordan Hall, New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, MA

Saturday January 27, 2018 at 4pm
A Far Cry performs “Guardians of the Groove”
Works by Lully, Sufjan Stevens (arr. Michael Atkinson) and Dvorak
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Jamaica Plain, MA

Sunday January 28, 2018 at 1:30pm
A Far Cry performs “Guardians of the Groove”
Works by Lully, Sufjan Stevens (arr. Michael Atkinson) and Dvorak
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA

Thursday February 8, 2018 at 7:30pm
The Silk Road Ensemble
Brooks Concert Hall, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA

Sunday February 11, 2018 at 4pm
A Far Cry and Simone Dinnerstein
Works by Prokofiev, J.S. Bach and Philip Glass
Mechanics Hall, Worcester, MA

Wednesday February 14, 2018 at 7:30pm
A Far Cry and Simone Dinnerstein
Works by Prokofiev, J.S. Bach and Philip Glass
The Society of Four Arts, Palm Beach, FL

Friday February 23, 2018 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet, MetLiveArts 2017-18 String Quartet-in-Residence
“Japan Across the World”
Works by Akira Nishimura, Kojiro Umezaki and Paul Wiancko
With Kojiro Umezaki, shakuhachi
Astor Court, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Tickets 

Saturday February 24, 2018 at 1pm, 2pm, 3pm
Aizuri Quartet and Kojiro Umezaki, shakuhachi
Lunar New Year Festival 
Astor Court, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY

Thursday March 8, 2018 at 7:30pm
“Layla and Majnun”
The Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group, with Alim Qasimov and Fargana Qasimova, mugham vocals
Tryon Festival Theatre, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, Urbana-Champaign, IL
Tickets 

Friday March 9, 2018 at 7:30pm
“Layla and Majnun”
The Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group, with Alim Qasimov and Fargana Qasimova, mugham vocals
Tryon Festival Theatre, Krannert Center, Urbana, IL
Tickets 

Friday March 16, 2018 at 7:30pm
“Layla and Majnun”
The Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group, with Alim Qasimov and Fargana Qasimova, mugham vocals
Harris Theater Millennium Park, Chicago, IL
Tickets 

Saturday March 17, 2018 at 2pm and 7:30pm
“Layla and Majnun”
The Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group, with Alim Qasimov and Fargana Qasimova, mugham vocals
Harris Theater Millennium Park, Chicago, IL
Tickets 

Thursday March 22, 2018 at 7:30pm
“Layla and Majnun”
The Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group, with Alim Qasimov and Fargana Qasimova, mugham vocals
Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C.
Tickets 

Friday March 23, 2018 at 7:30pm
“Layla and Majnun”
The Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group, with Alim Qasimov and Fargana Qasimova, mugham vocals
Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C.
Tickets 

Saturday March 24, 2018 at 1:30pm and 7:30pm
“Layla and Majnun”
The Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group, with Alim Qasimov and Fargana Qasimova, mugham vocals
Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C.
Tickets

Monday March 26, 2018 at 8pm
Schumann and Brahms Piano Quintets with Pam Frank, Mira Wang, Ulrich Eichenauer and Boris Giltberg
NY Yacht Club, New York, NY

Saturday March 31, 2018 at 2pm
Aizuri Quartet, 2017-18 MetLiveArts String Quartet-in-Residence
“Seven Last Words”
Haydn’s Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross, Op. 51
With guest artist Denice Frohman, poet and performer
The Met Cloisters, New York, NY
Tickets 

Thursday April 5, 2018 at 7pm
The Silk Road Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma
Hopkins Center, Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH
Tickets

Saturday April 7, 2018 at 8pm
The Silk Road Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma
Tilles Center for the Performing Arts
Brookville, NY
Tickets 

Sunday April 8, 2018 at 3pm
The Silk Road Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma
New Jersey Performing Arts Center
Newark, NJ
Tickets 

Monday April 9, 2018 at 7:30pm
The Silk Road Ensemble
McCarter Theatre Center, Princeton, NJ
Tickets 

Wednesday April 11, 2018 at 7pm
The Silk Road Ensemble
Colgate University, Hamilton, NY
Tickets 

Thursday April 12, 2018 at 7:30pm
The Silk Road Ensemble
Fine Arts Center Concert Hall, The University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Amherst, MA
Tickets 

Saturday April 14, 2018 at 7:30pm
The Silk Road Ensemble
Weis Center, Bucknell University
Lewisburg, PA
Tickets 

Saturday April 21, 2018 at 8pm
IRIS Orchestra
Germantown Performing Arts Center, Germantown, TN

Sunday April 22, 2018 at 2pm 
IRIS Orchestra
Germantown Performing Arts Center, Germantown, TN

Friday April 27, 2018
Aizuri Quartet with Caroline Shaw, vocals
Works by Haydn and Caroline Shaw
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

Saturday April 28, 2018 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Haydn, Beethoven, Webern and Paul Wiancko
Evermay Concert Series, Evermay Mansion, Washington, DC
Tickets 

Sunday April 29, 2018 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet at Tertulia NYC
Tickets 

Friday May 18, 2018 at 8pm
A Far Cry and Alexander Korsantia perform “Next Generation”
Works by Mozart/Ethan Wood, Ustvolskaya and Britten
Jordan Hall, New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, MA
Tickets

Sunday May 20, 2018 at 3pm
A Far Cry and David Shifrin
Works by Mozart, Copland and Britten
Western Connecticut State University, Danbury, CT

Wednesday May 23, 2018 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Hildegard von Bingen, Gabriella Smith, Lembit Beecher, Komitas and Beethoven
Shenson Chamber Music Concerts
National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DCFriday May 25, 2018 at 8pm
Tickets 

Friday May 25, 2018 at 8pm
A Far Cry and Simone Dinnerstein
Works by Philip Glass and J.S. Bach
Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto, ON, Canada

Thursday May 31, 2018 at 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet with Kinan Azmeh, clarinetist and composer
Works by Lembit Beecher, Komitas, Kinan Azmeh, Wang Lu, Michi Wiancko, Pauchi Sasaki and Can Bilir
LiveConnections, World Café Live, Philadelphia, PA
Tickets 

Friday June 1, 2018 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet, 2017-18 MetLiveArts String Quartet-in-Residence
“Music and Migration”
With Kinan Azmeh, clarinetist and composer
Works by Lembit Beecher, Komitas, Kinan Azmeh, Wang Lu, Michi Wiancko, Pauchi Sasaki and Can Bilir
Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Tickets 

Friday June 8, 2018 at 11am and 8pm
The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Works by Andrew Norman, Brahms and Beethoven
Ordway Concert Hall, St. Paul, MN
Tickets 

Saturday June 9, 2018 at 8pm
The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Works by Andrew Norman, Brahms and Beethoven
Ordway Concert Hall, St. Paul, MN
Tickets 

Sunday June 10, 2018 at 2pm
The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Works by Andrew Norman, Brahms and Beethoven
Ordway Concert Hall, St. Paul, MN
Tickets 

Sunday June 10, 2018 at 7pm
Aizuri Quartet
Works by Hildegard von Bingen, Gesualdo, Paul Wiancko, Lembit Beecher and Beethoven
Chamber Music Society of Minnesota
Sundin Music Hall, St. Paul, MN
Tickets 

June 17-July 1, 2018
Halcyon Music Festival
Portsmouth, NH
Tickets 

July 5-10, 2018
Green Lake Festival of Music
Faculty, Chamber Music Camp
Ripon College, Ripon, WI
More Info 

Sunday July 15, 2018 at 4pm
Caramoor Alumni “Chamber Feast”
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY
Tickets 

 

 

2015 - 2016 SEASON

July 11, 2015, 8pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
Grafton Music Festival, Grafton, VT

July 12, 2015, 7pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
Music in the Meadow/Stowe Performing Arts, Stowe, VT

July 13, 2015, 8pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
Newport Music Festival, Newport, RI

July 19, 2015, 7:30pm
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Haydn, Wagner, Beethoven
Minnesota Beethoven Festival, Winona State University, MN 

July 21, 2015, 7:30pm
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Haydn, Wagner, Beethoven
Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, New York City 

August 8 and 9, 2015, 2pm
Olympic Music Festival
All-Beethoven: Variations for Piano Trio in E-flat major, Op. 44; Variations for Cello and Piano on Mozart's "Bei Männern" WoO 46; Piano Trio in D Major, Op. 70 No. 1 "Ghost" 
With Julio Elizalde, piano; Caroline Goulding, violin 
Quilcene, WA

August 13, 2015, 7:30pm
Scrag Mountain Music
"Fratres": Works by Arvo Pärt, Henry Purcell, Victoria Poleva, Jean-Baptiste Barrière, the Weavers, and world premiere of Lembit Beecher's "Small Looking Up" for violin and cello  
With Emily Popham, violin; Mary Bonhag, soprano; Evan Premo, double bass; Lembit Beecher, harmonium
Unadilla Theater, Marshfield, VT

August 14, 2015, 7:30pm
Scrag Mountain Music
"Fratres": Works by Arvo Pärt, Henry Purcell, Victoria Poleva, Jean-Baptiste Barrière, the Weavers, and world premiere of Lembit Beecher's "Small Looking Up" for violin and cello  
With Emily Popham, violin; Mary Bonhag, soprano; Evan Premo, double bass; Lembit Beecher, harmonium
Green Mountain Girls Farm, Northfield, VT

August 15, 2015, 8pm
Scrag Mountain Music
"Fratres": Works by Arvo Pärt, Henry Purcell, Victoria Poleva, Jean-Baptiste Barrière, the Weavers, and world premiere of Lembit Beecher's "Small Looking Up" for violin and cello  
With Emily Popham, violin; Mary Bonhag, soprano; Evan Premo, double bass; Lembit Beecher, harmonium
Phantom Theater, Warren, VT

August 28, 2015, 7:30pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, Blue Hill, ME 

August 30, 2015, 4pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, Blue Hill, ME 

September 3-10, 2015
Aizuri Quartet 
Residency at Avaloch Farm Music Institute with composer Paul Wiancko
Boscawen, NH

September 12, 2015, 10:30am
Aizuri Quartet 
Kimmel Center Open House, Philadelphia, PA

September 20 and 21, 2015
The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia
Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, PA

September 25, 2015, 7:30pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
Philips Academy, Andover, MA

September 26, 2015, 4pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
St. John's Church, Jamaica Plain, MA

September 27, 2015, 1:30pm
A Far Cry
"Transamericana"
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA

October 4, 2015
Silk Road Ensemble
Fenway Park, Boston, MA
***Canceled due to weather***

October 18 and 19, 2015
The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia
Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, PA

October 23, 2015, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet
Sibelius: String Quartet in D Minor Op. 56, "Voces Intimae"
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, PA

October 25, 2015, 2pm
Aizuri Quartet at Schneider Concerts
Mozart K. 575, Berg Op. 3, Beethoven Op. 59 No. 3
New School Auditorium, New York City

October 27, 2015, 7pm
Aizuri Quartet 
"A Tribute to Sibelius at 150"
Finnish Embassy, Washington DC (Private Event)

October 28, 2015, 6pm
Aizuri Quartet at Barnes Foundation
Commissioned works by composers Alyssa Weinberg, Gabriella Smith and Rene Orth (world premiere)
Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia, PA

October 30, 2015, 10am
Aizuri Quartet at Chamber Music Live
Beethoven Op. 18 No. 6, Berg Op. 3, Sibelius "Voces Intimae" 
LeFrak Concert Hall, Aaron Copland School of Music, Queens, NY

November 5, 2015, 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet at Crescendo Club
Gabriella Smith's "Carrot Revolution"
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, PA

November 9-18, 2015
Aizuri Quartet Residency at Caramoor 
2015-2016 Ernst Stiefel String Quartet-in-Residence
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

November 15, 2015, 4pm
Aizuri Quartet Recital at Caramoor 
Mozart K. 575, Berg Op. 3, Sibelius "Voces Intimae"
Music Room, Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

November 21, 2015, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet with Rachel Sterrenberg, soprano
Berg Op. 3, Jennifer Higdon In the Shadow of Sirius, Beethoven Op. 18 No. 6
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, PA

December 5, 2015, 4pm
A Far Cry
"A Tale of Two Sixes"
St. John's Church, Jamaica Plain, MA

December 6, 2015, 1:30pm
A Far Cry
"A Tale of Two Sixes"
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA

December 12, 2015, 8pm
counter)induction
"Remembering Lee": program celebrating composer Lee Hyla
National Sawdust, Brooklyn, NY

December 18, 2015, 8pm
A Far Cry
"Old Friend" with Gabriel Kahane
Jordan Hall, Boston, MA

January 20-24, 2016
Aizuri Quartet + IRIS Orchestra
Germantown, TN

January 29, 2016, 8pm
A Far Cry
"Devotion" with Blue Heron
Old South Church, Boston, MA

January 30, 2016, 7:30pm
A Far Cry
"Devotion" with Blue Heron
University of Vermont, Burlington, VT

February 2, 2016, 8pm
counter)induction
"From Hungary"
Loreto Hall, The Sheen Center, New York City

February 6, 2016, 1pm
Aizuri Quartet at Philadelphia Museum of Art
"Music in the Galleries" featuring Gabriella Smith's "Carrot Revolution"
Philadelphia Museum of Art, PA

February 13, 2016, 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet 
Honolulu Chamber Music Series
University of Hawaii-Manoa, Honolulu, HI

February 16, 2016
Silk Road Ensemble
TED Conference, Vancouver, Canada

February 21, 2016, 7pm
Aizuri Quartet
Evergreen Woods Chamber Music Series, North Branford, CT

March 3, 2016, 7pm
A Far Cry with Olga Bell
"Lady Russia"
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA

March 9, 2016, 8pm
Curtis on Tour: Aizuri Quartet with clarinetist Michael Rusinek
New String Quartet by Yevgeniy Sharlat, Sibelius "Voces Intimae," Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, PA

March 12, 2016, 6:30pm
Curtis on Tour: Aizuri Quartet with clarinetist Michael Rusinek
New String Quartet by Yevgeniy Sharlat, Sibelius "Voces Intimae," Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Aspen Music Festival, Aspen, CO

March 14, 2016, 7:30pm
Curtis on Tour: Aizuri Quartet with clarinetist Michael Rusinek
New String Quartet by Yevgeniy Sharlat, Sibelius "Voces Intimae," Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Wassermann Festival, Caine Performance Hall, Utah State University, Logan, UT

March 19, 2016, 7:30pm
Curtis on Tour: Aizuri Quartet with clarinetist Michael Rusinek
New String Quartet by Yevgeniy Sharlat, Sibelius "Voces Intimae," Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Music in the Vineyards in Napa Valley, Jamieson Ranch Vineyards, American Canyon, CA

March 21, 2016, 7:30pm
Curtis on Tour: Aizuri Quartet with clarinetist Michael Rusinek
New String Quartet by Yevgeniy Sharlat, Sibelius "Voces Intimae," Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Athenaeum Music and Arts Library, La Jolla, CA

March 26, 2016, 8pm
Curtis on Tour: Aizuri Quartet with clarinetist Michael Rusinek
New String Quartet by Yevgeniy Sharlat, Sibelius "Voces Intimae," Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Mondavi Center for Performing Arts, Vanderhoef Studio Theater, Davis, CA

March 28, 2016, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet + Amernet Quartet
Classic Chamber Concerts, Sugden Community Theater, Naples, FL

April 1 and 2, 2016
Elgar Cello Concerto 
Philharmonic Orchestra of Santiago, Maestro José Luis Dominguez
Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Chile

April 6, 2016, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet with Jonathan Biss, piano
Schumann String Quartet Op. 41 No. 3 in A Major, Dvorak Piano Quintet
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, PA

April 8, 2016, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet at Wolf Trap
Beethoven Op. 18 No. 6, Caroline Shaw world premiere commissioned by Wolf Trap, Schumann String Quartet Op. 41 No. 3
Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, Vienna, VA

April 9-20, 2016
Aizuri Quartet Residency at Caramoor 
2015-2016 Ernst Stiefel String Quartet-in-Residence
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

April 10, 2016, 4pm
Aizuri Quartet Recital
Caramoor @ Waveny Chamber Music
Carriage Barn at Waveny Park, New Canaan, CT

April 17, 2016, 4pm
Aizuri Quartet Recital at Caramoor
Beethoven Op. 18 No. 6, Caroline Shaw, Schumann String Quartet Op. 41 No. 3 in A Major
Music Room, Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

April 23-May 3, 2016
Aizuri Quartet Residency at Chamber Music Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

May 11, 2016, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet 
Beethoven Op. 18 No. 6, Caroline Shaw, Beethoven Op. 130 with Grosse Fuge, Op. 133
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, PA

May 18, 2016, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet at PCMS with Ignat Solzhenitsyn, piano
Haydn String Quartet Op. 33 No. 1, Drozdov Piano Quintet, Shostakovich Piano Quintet
Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, PA

May 20, 2016
Aizuri Quartet at Artosphere Festival
Walton Arts Center, Fayetteville, AR

June 3, 2016, 8pm
counter)induction
"Tethys/The Ocean"
Tenri Cultural Institute, New York City

June 7, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
All-Beethoven program
Kawasaki, Japan

June 8, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Nagano, Japan

June 9, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Aichi Arts Center Nagoya, Japan

June 10, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Acros Fukuoka Symphony Hall, Japan

June 12, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Sapporo Concert Hall KITARA, Japan

June 14, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Sendai, Japan

June 15 and 16, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Suntory Hall, Tokyo, Japan

June 18 and 19, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Osaka Symphony Hall, Japan

June 23, 2016, 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet at Princeton University Summer Chamber Music Concerts
Beethoven Op. 18 No. 6, Caroline Shaw, Beethoven Op. 130 with Grosse Fuge, Op. 133
Richardson Auditorium, Princeton, NJ

June 25, 2016, 7:30pm
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Minnesota Beethoven Festival, Winona State University, MN

June 28, 2016
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, New York City

July 8, 2016
Aizuri Quartet at Caramoor
Paul Wiancko world premiere commissioned by Caramoor, Beethoven Op. 130 with Grosse Fuge, Op. 133
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

 

 

2014 - 2015 SEASON

Sept 2, 2014, 10am
Aizuri Quartet with cellist Peter Wiley
Schubert Cello Quintet at Curtis Institute of Music Convocation
Field Concert Hall, Philadelphia

Sept 13, 2014, 11am
Aizuri Quartet at Curtis Institute of Music Fellowship Luncheon
Webern Langsamer Satz, Haydn String Quartet Op. 64 Nr 3 in B-flat Major 
Field Concert Hall, Philadelphia

Sept 14 and 15, 2014
The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia
Acting Principal, 2014-2015 Season
Works by Verdi, Mendelssohn, Brossé, Beethoven
Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia

Oct 1, 2014, 11am
Caramoor Recital with Ieva Jokubaviciute
Beethoven Cello Sonatas
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

Oct 11, 2014, 7:30pm
Musicians from Marlboro  
Tour with Kim Kashkashian, Marina Piccinini, Sivan Magen, David McCarroll, Nikki Chooi, and Wenting Kang
György Kurtág Officium Breve in Memoriam Andreae Szervánszky for String Quartet, Beethoven String Quintet in C Major, Op. 29
Oneonta Concert Association
First United Methodist Church, Oneonta, NY

Oct 12, 2014, 4pm
Musicians from Marlboro
Cole Concert Series
Greenwich Library, Greenwich, CT

Oct 13, 2014, 8pm
Musicians from Marlboro
Philadelphia Chamber Music Society
Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia

Oct 14, 2014, 8pm
Musicians from Marlboro
Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, New York City

Oct 16, 2014, 7:30pm
Musicians from Marlboro
Freer Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.

Oct 18, 2014, 8pm
Musicians from Marlboro
Peoples’ Symphony Concerts
Washington Irving High School, New York City

Oct 19, 2014, 1:30pm
Musicians from Marlboro
Gardner Museum Concerts
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA

Nov 5, 2014, 6pm
Aizuri Quartet at Barnes Foundation
Barber Adagio and Debussy String Quartet
William Glackens exhibition, private debut
Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia

Nov 6, 2014, 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet presented by Live Connections
Debussy String Quartet, Lembit Beecher’s String Quartet These Memories May Be True, Andrew Lipke’s My Love (world premiere), and Anniversary (words by poet Denice Frohman and music by Andrew Lipke)
World Café Live, Philadelphia

Nov 9, 10 and 11, 2014
The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia
“Spotlight on Kozasa”
Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia

Nov 12-14, 2014
Aizuri Quartet residency for ArtsNaples World Festival
Naples, FL

Nov 16, 2014, 7pm
Aizuri Quartet at Evergreen Woods Series
Mozart K. 575, Debussy String Quartet, Beethoven Op. 59 Nr 3
North Branford, CT

Nov 21, 2014, 10am
Aizuri Quartet at Chamber Music Live
Mozart K. 575, Debussy String Quartet, Beethoven Op. 59 Nr 3
Lefrak Concert Hall, Queens College, NY

Nov 22, 2014, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet Curtis Residency Recital
Mozart K. 575, Debussy String Quartet, Beethoven Op. 59 Nr 3
Field Concert Hall, Philadelphia

Dec 3-6, 2014
IRIS Orchestra
Performances with IRIS Orchestra and Aizuri Quartet
Beethoven Grosse Fuge, Vivaldi and Piazzolla Four Seasons
Germantown Performing Arts Center, Germantown, TN

Dec 7, 2014, 4pm
Aizuri Quartet, private performance for Ravinia Festival Board of Trustees
Ravinia Festival, Highland Park, IL

Dec 8, 2014, 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet and Aeolus Quartet at Music Mondays
Lembit Beecher’s String Quartet These Memories May Be True
Dan Welcher’s Museon Polemos and Mendelssohn’s Octet with Aeolus Quartet
Advent Lutheran Church, New York City

Dec 11, 2014, 6pm and 9pm
Aizuri Quartet with members of eighth blackbird and Curtis 20/21 Ensemble
Terry Riley’s In C
SEI Innovation Studio, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia

Dec 13, 2014, 8pm
Mechatronic Orpheus
music by Lembit Beecher in collaboration with University of Pennsylvania architecture and engineering students
Slought Foundation, Philadelphia

Dec 19, 2014, 7pm
Aizuri Quartet Benefit Concert for Curiosity Concerts
Mozart K. 575, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Debussy String Quartet
Greenwich, CT

Dec 20, 2014, 11am
Aizuri Quartet interactive recital at Curiosity Concerts
Mozart K. 575, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Debussy String Quartet
Byram Shubert Library, Greenwich, CT

Dec 21, 2014, 4pm
Aizuri Quartet at Performers of Westchester
Debussy String Quartet
Dobbs Ferry Women’s Club, Dobbs Ferry, NY

January 9, 2015, 8pm
A Far Cry
“Improvisation”: Geminiani Concerto Grosso in E Minor Op 3 Nr 3, Lev “Ljova” Zhurbin Throw the Book (world premiere), Rzewski Les Moutons de Panurge, Mozart Piano Concerto K. 449 with pianist Robert Levin, Turceasca by Taraf de Haidouks, arr. Ljova
Jordan Hall, Boston, MA

Jan 18, 2015, 3pm
Dilijan Chamber Music Series
Artur Avanesov Duo for Violin and Cello (2010, U.S. Premiere), Mendelssohn String Quintet in B-flat Major
With Movses Pogossian, Varty Manouelian, Kim Kashkashian and Juan Miguel Hernandez
Zipper Hall, Los Angeles, CA

Jan 21, 2015, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet with Peter Wiley
Curtis on Tour Preview Recital
Haydn String Quartet Op. 64 Nr 3, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Schubert Cello Quintet 
Field Concert Hall, Philadelphia

Jan 24, 2015, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet with Peter Wiley
Haydn String Quartet Op. 64 Nr 3, Debussy String Quartet, Schubert Cello Quintet  
Candlelight Concert Society, Columbia, MD

Jan 25 and 26, 2015
The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia 
"Mozart with Miho"
Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia

Jan 30, 2015, 12 pm
Aizuri and Aeolus Quartets
Tri-I Noon Recitals at Rockefeller University, Caspary Auditorium
Mendelssohn String Quartet in E Minor Op. 44 Nr 2, Mendelssohn Octet
New York, NY

Feb 1, 2015, 4pm
Aizuri Quartet at Barnes Foundation
Alyssa Weinberg Parallels (2014), Debussy String Quartet
Comcast Auditorium, Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia

Feb 7, 2015, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet
Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber
Mozart K. 575, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Beethoven Op. 59 Nr 3 
Dresden, Germany

Feb 11, 2015, 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet presented by The Arts Arena
Mozart K. 575, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Beethoven Op. 59 Nr 3 
Hôtel de Talleyrand, Paris, France

Feb 21, 2015, 1pm
Aizuri Quartet at Music in the Galleries
Beethoven Op. 131, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata 
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia

Feb 22 and 23, 2015
The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia 
"Mahler's 4th"
Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia

Feb 28, 2015, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet at Curtis Institute of Music
Mark-Anthony Turnage Contusion (2014) 
Field Concert Hall, Philadelphia

March 13, 2015
Aizuri Quartet 
Haydn String Quartet Op. 64 Nr 3, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Mendelssohn String Quartet in E Minor, Op. 44 Nr 2
Highfield Hall, Falmouth, MA

March 15, 2015, 1:30pm
Aizuri Quartet and Peter Wiley 
Haydn String Quartet Op. 64 Nr 3, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Schubert Cello Quintet
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA

March 17, 2015, 7:30pm
Aizuri Quartet and Peter Wiley 
Haydn String Quartet Op. 64 Nr 3, Janáček Kreutzer Sonata, Schubert Cello Quintet 
Morgan Library and Museum, New York City

March 24-29, 2015
Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition
London, UK

April 4, 2015, 4pm
counter)induction
George Crumb 85th Birthday Celebration
Trinity Center for Urban Life, Philadelphia

April 11, 2015, 8pm
counter)induction
George Crumb 85th Birthday Celebration
SubCulture, New York City

April 17, 2015, 8pm
A Far Cry
“Tongue in Cheek”: Hindemith Suite from Minimax, Farina Capriccio Stravagante, Boccherini Fandango, Elkies Fugue Allegro Troppo, Mozart Ein Musikalischer Spaß, K. 522
The Village Church, Nahant, MA

April 18, 2015, 4pm
A Far Cry
"Tongue in Cheek"
St John’s Church, Jamaica Plain, MA

April 19, 2015, 1:30pm
A Far Cry
"Tongue in Cheek"
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA

April 23, 24 and 25, 2015
St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Guest Principal
Fred Lerdahl (new work), Beethoven Piano Concerto Nr 3 with pianist Lise de la Salle, and Mozart Symphony Nr 38, Prague
Ordway Concert Hall, St. Paul, MN

May 8, 2015, 8pm
Aizuri Quartet Curtis Residency Recital
With pianist Jonathan Biss and soprano Rachel Sterrenberg
Works include Jennifer Higdon's In the Shadow of Sirious and Brahms Piano Quintet in F Minor
Field Concert Hall, Philadelphia

May 10, 2015, 2:30pm
The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia
“50th Anniversary Celebration Concert”
Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia

May 16, 2015, 7:30pm
counter)induction
“Epitaphs: Music in Memoriam”
Crypt of the Church of the Intercession, New York City

May 25, 2015
The Knights
Philharmonie Merck, Darmstadtium
Darmstadt, Germany

May 26, 2015
The Knights
Festspielhaus Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden, Germany

May 27, 28, and 29, 2015
The Knights with Dawn Upshaw, soprano 
Salzburger Kulturvereinigung
Salzburg, Austria

May 30, 2015
The Knights with Dawn Upshaw, soprano 
Vienna Musikverein
Vienna, Austria

June 5-27, 2015
Aizuri Quartet and violist Roberto Díaz 
Curtis on Tour performances in Mexico City and Morelia, Mexico; San Jose, Costa Rica; Santiago and Frutillar, Chile; Bremen, Germany; Salzburg, Austria

 


"Anna Clyne’s "Shorthand" for cello and orchestra – another New York premiere – featured cellist Karen Ouzounian who performed with tremendous heart, bringing joy and a captivating sound to the stage. The hauntingly beautiful opening gave way to a wonderful klezmer tune filled with energy and rhythmic drive, then melodic lines interspersed with crazy scalar passages; Ouzounian’s standing ovation was well deserved. "- The Strad, July 31, 2024

“A sumptuous work for cello and strings by Anna Clyne led the second half of the concert. Soloist Karen Ouzounian…displayed her gorgeous singing tone on Shorthand, a beautifully lush composition.” - Sequenza 21, May 21, 2024

“A searching new work for cello and orchestra by Anna Clyne, played with deep expression by Karen Ouzounian." - Feast of Music, May 19, 2024

"Behind the nimble playing of soloist Karen Ouzounian the orchestra churned out quickly rising and falling arpeggios. The sound was sonorous, the performance exciting.” - Blog Critics, May 18, 2024

"Ouzounian played it all with commitment and finesse, as did the orchestra.” - Cadenza NYC, May 18, 2024

“Ouzounian’s powerful bowing and dazzling panoply of extended techniques were in full force” - Silkroad Trio Opens Ears With Cross-Cultural Connections, Jeff Kaliss, Jan 21, 2024, SF Classical Voice

"Most striking was the role [Karen Ouzounian] was given in the ensemble performing a staged chamber version of the Omar opera, Omar's Journey, commissioned by Ojai... You could not help hearing her musical lines and the vigor and passion of her delivery as the opera progressed." – Berkshire Fine Arts, June 2023

“Niloufar Nourbakhsh’s Veiled, lovingly rendered by cellist Karen Ouzounian…” — Santa Barbara Independent, June 2023

“Meanwhile, the central Non troppo lento [of Bartók’s String Quartet No. 4] emerged hauntingly, highlighted by Karen Ouzounian’s noble cello solos… Leading off the night was another gem: cellist Ouzounian’s arrangement of Clara Schumann’s song, ‘Ich stand in dunkeln Träumen.’ Flowing and idiomatically voiced, it’s a wonderful adaptation.” — Boston Classical Review, May 2023

“In the night music—a Bartók trope—the silvery grain of Karen Ouzounian’s cello generated hushed agitation…The harmonies of Ouzounian’s arrangement of Clara Schumann’s ‘Ich stand in dunkeln Träumen’ beamed and shimmered through each hymn-like strand.” — Aaron Keebaugh, The Arts Fuse, May 2023

Get to know Silkroad Ensemble Cellist/Composer, Karen Ouzounian — George Mason University, Jan 2023

"Der zweite Konzertteil startet mit Anna Clynes ‘Shorthand': Als 'Stenogramm der Emotion’ hat nämlich Leo Tolstoi die Musik beschrieben, in dessen Ehedrama-Novelle ‘Die Kreutzersonate’ Beethovens Werk eine entscheidende Rolle spielt. Solistin Karen Ouzounian bestach auf dem Cello mit blitzsauberer Intonation.” -Jörg Worat, Hannoversche Allgemeine, Nov 2022

“In einem kurzen Cello-Konzert von Anna Clyne („Shorthand“) gab Cellistin Karen Ouzounian mit feiner Tonlinie die Solo-Stimme.” — Bernhard Uske, Frankfurter Rundschau, Nov 2022

“Shorthand is an elegiac piece for much of its length, and packs a real emotional punch, with cellist Karen Ouzounian’s passionate playing leading the way.” — BBC Music Magazine, Oct 2022

"Als Solistin tritt Karen Ouzounian aus der Cellogruppe hervor. Sie erfüllt die romantischen Kantilenen im Stück „Shorthand“ von Anna Clyne mit wunderbarerer Wärme und einem Hauch."— Rheinische Post, Düsseldorf, Oct 2022

“Den eminente amerikanske komponist Anna Clyne havde skrevet sin ”Shorthand” direkte tilensemblet og dets cellosolist, Karen Ouzounian, begyndende i en molfarvet, douce klangpalet, der senere udviklede sig til fyrige optøjer med ekkoer af jødisk bryllupsmusik. Ouzounian spillede sin solostemme stærkt og udtryksfuldt, både i de elegiske afdelinger og det mere rytmisk bevægelige.” —Tore Mortensen, Nordjyske Stiftstidende, Aalborg Denmark, Oct 2022

"In Shorthand, a new work composed for The Knights, Anna Clyne drew from both Beethoven and Janáček’s music, with an ardent solo part for cellist Karen Ouzounian… Ouzounian handled the brilliant running figures with impressive virtuosity, racing up and down the fingerboard, often pursued by the other strings.” — Washington Classical Review, Sept 2022

"Karen Ouzounian powerfully shatters pigeonholes with her artistic partners"  - Profile by Wynne Delacoma in the Ravinia Magazine

"...soloist Karen Ouzounian plays with a voracious, burnished tone..." – Olivia Giovetti (Van Magazine)

"...the radiant cellist..." – Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim (The New York Times)

"...nothing less than gorgeous..." – Jon W. Sparks (Memphis Commercial Appeal)

"Mr. Chooi and Ms. Kashkashian were joined by the expressive cellist Karen Ouzounian and the sweet-toned violinist David McCarroll in Gyorgy Kurtag’s haunting “Officium Breve in Memoriam Endre Szervanszky."

 The work is a moving tribute to the older Hungarian composer as well as to the influence Webern had on Szervanszky and Mr. Kurtag. In the 15 miniature movements of around 30 seconds each, the musicians vividly conjured up grief, anger, serenity and discord. The luscious final "Arioso Interrotto" offers a brief quotation from Szervanszky’s Serenade for String Orchestra that ends, cruelly, in midsentence.

But that fragment was sufficient to draw an arc — however tentative — to Beethoven’s String Quintet in C (Op. 29) with its exquisite Adagio. Here, Ms. Kang took over the first viola part with Ms. Kashkashian beside her. The music making was exuberant and charismatic, driven by an appetite for dynamic extremes and harmonic quirks: elements Beethoven willingly yields."

– Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim (The New York Times) - October 16, 2014

Read full review

"György Kurtág is one of the most gifted composers of this or any other era, and his string quartet Op. 28 from 1989 - the "Officium Breve in Memoriam Andreae Szervánszky" - is among his most deeply moving works. Spare, suggestive and aphoristic, the work’s 15 brief movements form a profound meditation on death and loss, closing with a hymn-like movement that ends — almost heartbreakingly — in mid-phrase. Kashkashian and Chooi were joined by David McCarroll on violin and cellist Karen Ouzounian for an exceptionally thoughtful reading of this searing and flawless work."
– Stephen Brookes (The Washington Post) - October 17, 2014

Read full review

“The opening harmonics [of György Kurtág’s Officium breve], courtesy of cellist Karen Ouzounian, established a haunting undercurrent that would flow throughout.”
– Tiran Grillo (Sequenza 21) - November 4, 2014

Read full review

"It’s worth noting the remarkable performance of cellist Karen Ouzounian, who was not one of the featured soloists but had many solo passages throughout and whose tone and precision were nothing less than gorgeous. Stern rightly brought her out to share bows with the violinists."
– Jon W. Sparks (Memphis Commercial Appeal) - December 7, 2014

"The beautiful solo cello work of Karen Ouzounian was a highlight."
– Charles Noble (Oregon Arts Watch) - January 22, 2014

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"Greed, envy and avarice are the character traits explored in Mr. Gander’s work, vividly rendered by the pianist Ning Yu, the cellist Karen Ouzounian and the violinist Miranda Cuckson in the program "Correspondent" at the Tenri Cultural Institute on Sunday evening. [...] Ms. Ouzounian demonstrated a rich tone in Suzanne Sorkin’s "Swept" [...] Eric Moe’s intense “And Life Like Froth Doth Throb” takes its title from a satirical poem by the violist Cynthia Fogg, for whom he wrote the work. Here, the violist Jessica Meyer was the able soloist in the energetic work, her brisk figurations intertwining with the cello, deftly played by Ms. Ouzounian."
– Vivien Schweitzer (The New York Times) - November 13, 2013

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"The sterling lineup of performers included the core ensemble members Miranda Cuckson on violin and viola, the violist Jessica Meyer and the clarinetist Benjamin Fingland, as well as the radiant cellist Karen Ouzounian and the pianist Ning Yu, who played with great clarity and balance. [...] Rapidly shifting weather fronts seemed to move through Douglas Boyce’s "Bird- like Things in Things Like Trees," as Mr. Fingland, Ms. Ouzounian and Ms. Yu created an alluring array of sounds that evoked the movement of birds, and the branches they sit on, more than their actual song and call."
– Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim (The New York Times) - June 2, 2013

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Download High-Res Photos

 "Shorthand" by Anna Clyne

Live performance with The Knights on November 6, 2022 at Die Glocke in Bremen, Germany. It was a joy to tour this piece written for me and the Knights throughout Germany and Denmark!

 

 

"Lullaby" by Nasim Khorassani and Omoide  

Joining Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi for two songs during their duo recital at the 77th Ojai Music Festival 

 

Veiled  

Performing “Veiled” for solo cello and electronics by Niloufar Nourbakhsh at the 77th Ojai Music Festival 

 

Tell Me Again  

Excerpt from the concerto "Tell Me Again," written for me by Lembit Beecher and premiered in April 2021 with the Orlando Philharmonic and Eric Jacobsen, conductor. 

 

Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur

Final movement of "Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur" by Kayhan Kalhor/arr. Michael Atkinson, featuring Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh; Karen Ouzounian, cello; Sandeep Das, tabla; Greater Bridgeport Symphony with Eric Jacobsen, conductor and music director. Video from the album "Blue as the Turquoise Night," released in 2021 on Bright Shiny Things.

 

Groong  

My collaboration with the extraordinary visual artist Kevork Mourad: “Groong” (The Crane), by the Armenian composer and priest Gomidas Vartabed.

 

A Year to the Day  

A song cycle for tenor and piano trio by Lembit Beecher. Video premiere on The Violin Channel featuring Nicholas Phan, tenor, Augustin Hadelich, violin, Karen Ouzounian, cello, and Orion Weiss, piano.

 

In Motion 

An evening-length video piece exploring the relationship of family history and art-making by combining interviews with new compositions by Karen and collaborations across artistic disciplines. 

 

Shorthand

World premiere performance of Shorthand, by Anna Clyne, with Karen Ouzounian, solo cello, and musicians from The Knights. July 23, 2020 at Caramoor. 

 

Cello Creation

Stop motion animation by Lembit Beecher, inspired by the cello concerto he’s composing for me. The concerto will be premiered in April 2021 with the Orlando Philharmonic and Eric Jacobsen, conductor.

 

Hum and Drum

A video excerpt of “Hum and Drum” for cello and piano by composer Ilari Kaila. This duo was composed in 2017 and is featured on the album The Bells Bow Down, a collection of Kaila’s chamber music (Innova Recordings, 2020). Live performance on December 17, 2018 with Adrienne Kim, pianist.

 

Listen on Spotify to "Hum and Drum" by Ilari Kaila, from the album The Bells Bow Down. With Adrienne Kim, pianist.

 

Blue

Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur by Kayhan Kalhor (arr. Michael Atkinson) 

Solo cello: Karen Ouzounian
Solo kemancheh: Kayhan Kalhor
Solo tabla: Sandeep Das

Excerpt of live performance on September 22, 2019 with the Greater Bridgeport Symphony and Eric Jacobsen, conductor.

 

Sophia’s Wide Awake Dreams

I.  Dream Nr. 1

II. Dream Nr. 2 (5:43)

Written for the Aizuri Quartet, custom music box, and electronically-controlled sound sculptures, “Sophia’s Wide Awake Dreams” (2017) was adapted from Lembit Beecher’s opera “Sophia’s Forest." From the Aizuri Quartet’s GRAMMY-nominated debut album Blueprinting (New Amsterdam Records, 2018). 

 

No. 14

A short work I composed for cello, piano, double bass and soprano, inspired by a ca. 1911 Estonian folk song transcription. Live performance from October 2013 presented by Scrag Mountain Music, featuring Mary Bonhag (soprano), Evan Premo (double bass), Lembit Beecher (piano) and myself.

 

Carrot Revolution

The Aizuri Quartet performing Gabriella Smith's "Carrot Revolution," from their debut album Blueprinting:

 

St. James Infirmary Blues

Performing "St. James Infirmary Blues" with the Silkroad Ensemble and Rhiannon Giddens at TED2016 in Vancouver:

 


E-mail Karen directly at: 
karen [dot] ouzounian [at] gmail [dot] com
 
Links: 
 
Silkroad Ensemble
www.silkroad.org
  
The Knights
www.theknightsnyc.com
  
Lembit Beecher, composer
lembitbeecher.com
 
 
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