Moores Chamber Music Downtown III : Formosa Quartet

MOORES SCHOOL OF MUSIC

MOORES CHAMBER MUSIC DOWNTOWN presents

FORMOSA QUARTET

with UH STRING FACULTY

Stephen Block, director

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18 | 7:30 p.m.

Sanders Hall

Christ Church Cathedral Houston, Texas

Formosa Quartet

Stephen Block, director

PROGRAM

Two Pieces for String Octet, Op. 11 Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)

Prelude Scherzo

Wayne Lee, Jasmine Lin, Kirsten Yon, Mann-Wen Lo, violin

Matthew Cohen, Wayne Brooks, viola Deborah Pae, Eunghee Cho, cello

String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, Op. 41 Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

Allegro vivace

Andante quasi variazioni

Scherzo. Presto – Trio. L’istesso tempo

Allegro molto vivace

Formosa Quartet

Jasmine Lin, violin / Wayne Lee, violin

Matthew Cohen, viola / Deborah Pae, cello

A Formosa Quartet Set *

* selections from FQ’s exclusive collection of pop, folk, jazz, and poetry arrangements

Formosa Quartet

Formosa Quartet

Winners of the First Prize and Amadeus Prize at the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition, the FORMOSA QUARTET has been hailed as “spellbinding” (The Strad) and “remarkably fine” (Gramophone), and has given critically acclaimed performances at the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, the Da Camera Society of Los Angeles, the Chicago Cultural Center, the Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center, the National Concert Hall in Taipei, Wigmore Hall in London, die Glocke Bremen, and the Kammermusiksaal at the Berliner Philharmonie.

For two decades and counting, the Formosa Quartet has forged uncharted musical terrain in performances that go “beyond the beautiful and into the territory of unexpectedly thrilling… like shots of pure espresso” (MUSO Magazine). The founding members’ interest in championing Taiwanese music and Indigenous cultures has since expanded to include the exploration of the rich folk traditions and heritages found in America today. Whether in its uncompromisingly exploratory approach to the standard quartet literature; its socioculturally probing American Mirror program concept; or its unique Sets curated from its collection of folk, pop, jazz, and poetry arrangements, the Formosa Quartet is committed to an insatiable search for the fresh and new in string quartet expression.

Matthew Cohen, Deborah Pae, Wayne Lee and Jasmine Lin

Formosa Quartet

The Formosa Quartet undertakes a variety of residencies at organizations and institutions across North America and Asia. FQ is Faculty Quartet-in-Residence at the National Youth Orchestra of Canada (NYOC), holds week-long performance and teaching residencies at the University of Houston and Eastern Michigan University, and has enjoyed residencies at Art of Élan; Rice University; University of California, Los Angeles; and University of California, San Diego.

The Formosa Quartet has played a leading role in actively commissioning new works, contributing significantly to the modern string quartet repertory. FQ’s 2019 milestone album From Hungary to Taiwan includes premiere recordings of three Formosa commissions: Lei Liang’s Song Recollections, Dana Wilson’s Hungarian Folk Songs, and Wei-Chieh Lin’s Five Taiwanese Folk Songs. Other works composed for the quartet include pieces by Dana Wilson, Wei-Chieh Lin, Shih-Hui Chen, and Clancy Newman.

The members of the Formosa Quartet – Jasmine Lin, Wayne Lee, Matthew Cohen, and Deborah Pae –have established themselves as leading solo, chamber, and orchestral musicians. With degrees from the Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music, New England Conservatory, Colburn Conservatory, and the Cleveland Institute of Music; they have performed in major venues throughout the United States, Asia, and Europe, and have been top prizewinners in prestigious competitions such as the Paganini, Primrose, Fischoff, and Naumburg competitions. As chamber musicians, they have appeared regularly at the Marlboro, Kingston, Santa Fe, and Ravinia festivals, as well as at Lincoln Center, La Jolla Summerfest, Caramoor, and Chamber Music Northwest. The members of the Formosa Quartet currently serve on faculty at Eastern Michigan University, Roosevelt University, and Heifetz International Music Institute. They have previously taught at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Taos School of Music, and the Juilliard School.

Formed in 2002 when the four Taiwanese-descended founders came together for a concert tour of Taiwan, the Formosa Quartet’s cultural identity has since expanded to include broader American, pan-Asian, and Eastern European roots. Their name “Formosa” is taken in its most basic sense: Portuguese for “beautiful.”

The Formosa Quartet forms an octet with violins Andrea Guarneri (1662) and Joseph Curtin (2001), a Peter Westerlund viola (2014), and a Vincenzo Postiglione cello (1885).

The Formosa Quartet logo is an original letter seal handcarved and gifted to the FQ by calligraphy artist Shen-Shong Chien. Mr. Chien is the creator and curator of the annual Shih Da Arts Exhibit; presented every October, the exhibit showcases the leading artists of Asia today.

Formosa Quartet

BIOGRAPHIES

Kirsten Yon

Kirsten Yon is Associate Professor of Violin at the University of Houston Moores School of Music and Head of the String Division. Dr. Yon’s career includes recitals and masterclasses throughout the United States, Brazil, Czech Republic, England, South Korea, Honduras, Mexico, Germany, France, Iceland, and Norway. She has taught at summer festivals including Interlochen, ARIA, Texas Music Festival, Cambridge International String Academy, and numerous others in the US and abroad. Dedicated to musical connection at both the international and community levels, Yon is the Founder/Artistic Director of Annual Encuentro de Cuerdas, a long-standing pedagogical program in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Currently the Concertmaster of the Shreveport Symphony, Yon also enjoys performing chamber music, contemporary music, and spending time with her two rescue puppies Bella and Jasper.

Mann-Wen Lo

Violinist Mann-Wen Lo performs extensively throughout the world in some of the most prestigious venues as a soloist and chamber musician. Lo has been a recurring artist in performances at Carnegie Hall, Jordan Hall, Alice Tully Hall, and Walt Disney Hall, among others. Featured on radio and TV broadcasts in the United States, Taiwan, Japan, and France, Lo has gained recognition at numerous competitions and awards. Most recently, her recording with the Mana Music Quartet featuring music of Queen Liliʻuokalani was awarded Instrumental Album of the Year at the 2021 Na Hoku Hanohano Award. Lo is a core member in Delirium Musicum, which is releasing a debut album with Warner Classics in April 2023. Lo is a violin faculty at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music.

Formosa Quartet

Wayne Brooks

Wayne Brooks served as the Principal Viola of the Houston Symphony from 1985 through 2020. He joined the orchestra in 1977 as Associate Principal Viola after graduating from the Curtis Institute of Music. Appointed Principal Viola in1985, he was a frequent soloist with the orchestra and performed the southwestern United States premiere of Alfred Schnittke’s Viola Concerto. He was the soloist in the world premiere of La Llorona: Tone Poem for Viola and Orchestra, a Houston Symphony Orchestra commission for him by composer Gabriela Lena Frank. He has appeared in chamber music performances with Lynn Harrell, Yefim Bronfman, Garrick Ohlsson and Christoph Eschenbach, among others, and participated in concerts of chamber music in the Houston Symphony’s INNOVA series, in performances with Da Camera of Houston, Greenbriar Consortium and Mukuru “Arts for AIDS” Series.

Before joining the faculty of the Moores School of Music in 2003, he was an associate professor of viola at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. His former students perform in the New World, Charlotte, Richmond and Detroit Symphonies, as well as the Hong Kong Philharmonic. They can be found in the Chiara, Arianna and Borromeo String Quartets and serve on the faculties of Creighton University, the University of Idaho, Sam Houston State University and the Amelia Island Festival.

Eunghee Cho

Korean-American cellist Eunghee Cho was awarded Second Prize and the special award for Outstanding Chinese New Piece Performance at the Schoenfeld International String Competition (China). He also earned top prizes at the Chamber Music Yellow Springs Competition (USA), Gustav Mahler Prize Cello Competition (Czech Republic), and AEMC International Chamber Music Competition (Italy). He has appeared as soloist with ensembles around the country and formerly held Principal Cello positions with Atlantic Symphony Orchestra and Boston Festival Orchestra.

Eunghee is the Artistic Director of Mellon Music Festival in Davis, CA, and he teaches on the faculty of University of Houston’s Moores School of Music where he also directs the Moores Cello Ensemble, CelloFest Houston, and the Houston Chapter of Music for Food.

2022-2023 Moores Society

As of January 20, 2023

The Moores Society is the philanthropic volunteer organization for the Moores School of Music. Moores Society members and donors promote community awareness and provide funding for scholarships and special projects. Moores Society members receive invitations to concerts and special events held throughout the year.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Darlene Clark, President

Jackie & Malcolm Mazow, Immediate Past Presidents

Donna Shen, Vice President Membership

Nancy Willerson, Corresponding Secretary

Ann Tornyos, Recording Secretary

Meg Boulware, Opera Production Council Chair

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Rita Aron

Ann Ayre

Meg Boulware

Terry Ann Brown

Carla Burns

Cheryl Byington

Julie Cogan

Timothy Doyle

Warren Ellsworth

Sheila Aron

Christopher Bacon

Philamena Baird

Chris Becker

Tom Becker

Susan Binney

Ann Boss

Nancy Bowden

Zarine Boyce

Robert Chanon

Anna Dean

Vicky Dominguez

Ann Faget

Kelli Fein

Debbie Feuer

Cathy Coers Frank

Joyce Frassanito

Mary Fusillo

Elia Gabbanelli

Frank Geider, MS DDS

Marita Glodt

Sean Gorman

Maureen Higdon

Gary Hollingsworth & Ken Hyde

Mady Kades

Linda Katz

Michelle & Jack Matzer

Gary Patterson

Shirley Rose

BOARD OF ADVISORS

2022-2023

Diane & Harry Gendel

Mariglyn & Stephen Glenn

Beatrice & Gregory Graham

Deb Happ

Ellen & Alan Holzberg

Gladys Hooker

Janis Landry

Cora Sue & Harry Mach

Karinne McCullough

Mary Ann McKeithan

Cathy McNamara

Jennifer Meyer

Celia Morgan

Jo & Joseph Nogee

Kitten & Ron Page

Kusum Patel

Fran Fawcett Peterson

Carroll R. Ray

Jan Rhodes

Carol Lee Robertson

Richard Schmitt

Donna Shen

Rhonda Sweeney

Ann Tornyos

Betty Tutor

Bob & Mary Ann Wilkins

Beth Wolff

Lillie Robertson

Minette Robinson

Heidi Rockecharlie

Kathi Rovere

Donna Scott & Mitch Glassman

Helen Shaffer

Donna Shen

Satoko & Anthony Shou

Nancy Strohmer

Susan Thompson

Virginia & Gage Van Horn

Barbara Van Postman

Carol & Carl Vartian

Nancy Willerson

Phyllis Williams

Cyvia Wolff

Jo Dee Wright

Gay Yellen

2022-2023 Moores Society

As of January 20, 2023

OPERA PRODUCTION COUNCIL

Robin Angly

Christopher Bacon

Meg Boulware, Chair

Gwyneth Campbell

Anna Dean

Tim Doyle

Warren Ellsworth

Jose Alvarado

Robin Angly & Miles Smith

Rita & Jeffrey Aron

Alan Austin & David A. White

Ann & Jonathan Ayre

Christopher Bacon & Craig Miller

Pamela & Stephen Bertone

Olga & Gerardo Balboa

Susan & Michael Bloome

Meg Boulware & Hartley Hampton

Carla Burns

Keith Butcher

Cheryl & Carl Carlucci

Robert Chanon

Lydia & James Chao

Darlene Clark & Edwin Friedrichs

Cynthia & Geroge Mitchell Foundation

Victoria Dominguez

Timothy Doyle & Robert Royall, II

Richard Drapeau

Ursula & Saul Balagura

Matthew Dirst

Kelli Fein

Geraldine Gill

Kathryn & Brendan Godfrey

Ellen Gritz & Milton Rosenau, Jr.

Lucila & Bill Haase

Deborah Happ & Richard Rost

Ann Faget

Gerri Gill

Ellen and Alan Holzberg

Lee Huber

Shannon Langman

Helen Mann

Jackie and Malcolm Mazow

1000+

Ann Faget

Sylvia Farb

Debbie Feuer

Elaine & Marvy Finger

Toni & Walter Finger

Linda Fulton

Elia Gabbanelli

Mariglyn & Stephen Glenn

Manuel Gonzales

Aaron Gonzales

Susan & Sean Gorman

Gary

Konnie Gregg

Hollingsworth & Ken Hyde

Ellen & Alan Holzberg

Monzer Hourani

Lee Huber

Sharon & Robert Lietzow

Jack & Michelle Matzer

Jackie & Malcolm Mazow

Paula & Robert Mendoza

Annie Pati

Luis Ramirez

Charles Riesen

Lillie Roberrtson

500+

Maureen Higdon

Linda Katz

Connie Kwan-Wong

Vanessa Lopez

Kathleen Moore & Steven Homer

Gary Patterson

Janet & Charles Rinehart

David Rowan

Rhonda Sweeney

Irena Witt

Johanna Wolfe

Jo Dee Wright

Floyd Robinson

Shirley E. Rose

Rosamund & David Rowan

Victoria Scelba

Jane & Richard Schmitt

Helen & James Shaffer

Donna & Tim Shen

Melanie Sonnenberg

Rhonda & Donald Sweeney

Vita Taksa

Ann Tomatz

Ann Tornyos

Betty & Jesse Tutor, Jr.

David Voll

Betsy Cook Weber & Fredric Weber

Nancy Willerson

Andrea & Carl Wilson

Irena Witt

Johanna & Richard Wolfe

Beth Wolff

Jo Dee & Cliff Wright

Allyn & Jill Risley

River Oaks Chamber Orchestra

Joseph Thayer

Susan Thompson

Ann Tomatz

Virginia & Gage Van Horn

Robert Zinn

2022-2023 Moores Society

As of January 20, 2023

Thomas Blocher

Terry Ann Brown

Carla Burns

Mathilda Cochran

Dru & Richard Davis

Kenneth Euler

Cathy Coers Frank

Joyce & John Frassanito

Mary & Robert Fusillo

Beatrice & Gregory Graham

Elad Ben-Menashe

Fredy Bonilla

Cynthia Clayton-Vasquez & Hector Vasquez

Julie Fischer

Sandra Harris

250+

Claire Liu Greenberg & Joseph Greenberg

Michelle Greenberg

Deborah Happ

Deborah Hirsch

Gladys Hooker

Russell Kneupper

Therese Kosten

Helen Mann

Karinne & William McCullough

120+

Clara Kukes

Richard Kummins

Lynn Lamkin

Michael Taksa

Katherine Turner

Jenny Meyer

Joel Oppenheim

Susan Osterberg

Dalia Pineda

Lisa Powell & Philip Berquist

Nancy & Hans Strohmer

Andrea Turner

Carol Vartian

Cyvia & Melvyn Wolff

Gay Yellen & Don Reiser

Yone & Shelton Vaughan

Debra Witter & Scott Chase

Lorraine Wulfe

MOORES SCHOOL OF MUSIC

ABOUT THE MOORES SCHOOL

Moores School of Music

The University of Houston’s Moores School of Music (MSM) is one of the leading comprehensive music schools in the nation. Its remarkable faculty — of internationally recognized performers, composers, and scholars — outstanding student body, modern facilities, and broad range of programs make MSM the natural choice for nearly 600 students annually. The school’s commitment to academic excellence and the highest performance standards has ensured its role as a vital resource in the educational and cultural life of Houston and beyond.

Moores Society

The Moores Society is the philanthropic volunteer organization for the Moores School of Music. Moores Society members and donors promote community awareness and provide funding for scholarships and special projects. Moores Society members receive invitations to concerts and special events held throughout the year. Please visit uh.edu/kgmca/music/moores-society.

For more information, please contact Emily Wolfe, Patrons Relations and Communications Coordinator, at mooressociety@uh.edu or 713.743.8036

ABOUT THE COLLEGE

Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts

The Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts at the University of Houston is a dynamic home of creativity and collaboration in one of America’s most artistically vibrant and culturally diverse cities. Bringing together the performing and visual arts entities at the University of Houston, the college has the ability to harness the power of the arts to ultimately impact our world. Our award-winning, internationally distinguished faculty provides top-quality instruction to the talented, emerging student artists from more than 30 programs of study. The Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts seeks to positively impact the community and to empower our students to use their talents to change the world.

Giving to the Arts

Please support emerging artists at the University of Houston's Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts. Your gift enables KGMCA students and educators to create, collaborate, and transform Houston’s cultural landscape. Your gift makes a difference.

• Please visit https://giving.uh.edu/gift. To give directly to the Moores School of Music, please visit uh.edu/ kgmca/music/giving

• For more information contact Emily Wolfe, Patron Relations and Communications Coordinator, at ewolfe@uh.edu or 713.743.7732

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