Calder Quartet
| Calder Quartet | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genres | Contemporary, classical |
| Occupation(s) | Chamber ensemble |
| Years active | 1998-present |
| Website | www.calderquartet.com |
| Members | Benjamin Jacobson, violin Andrew Bulbrook, violin Jonathan Moerschel, viola Eric Byers, cello |
The Calder Quartet (CQ) is a string quartet based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1998 at the University of Southern California, the group takes its name from American sculptor Alexander Calder. The ensemble is currently composed of its founding members, including violinists Benjamin Jacobson and Andrew Bulbrook, violist Jonathan Moerschel, and cellist Eric Byers. Los Angeles Times music critic, Mark Swed called the CQ "one of America's great string quartets." In 2014, the CQ was awarded one of Lincoln Center's prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grants for "professional assistance and recognition to talented instrumentalists who the Recommendation Board and Executive Committee believe have great potential."
The Calder Quartet formed at the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music and continued studies at the Colburn School with Ronald Leonard, where they were part of that school's first graduating class. While at the Juilliard School, they received the Artist Diploma in Chamber Music Studies as the Juilliard Graduate Resident String Quartet. They have also studied with Professor Eberhard Feltz at the Hochschule für Musik "Hanns Eisler" in Berlin. In 2009, the Calder Quartet received the 2009 ASCAP Adventurous Programming Award. They eventually became assistant faculty and quartet in residence at the Colburn School. In 2003, the Calder Quartet joined with composer Matt McBane, to found the Carlsbad Music Festival. The CQ has been Founding Ensemble-in-Residence since the festival's inception. In March 2013, the CQ was featured in and appeared on the cover of the magazine The Strad.
On September 14, 2011 the Calder Quartet launched a nonprofit called the Calder Performing Arts Organization (CPAO) with the purpose of commissioning and recording contemporary music, as well as the support of the Calder Quartet's educational outreach performances in Southern California. The nonprofit was inaugurated at the Blum & Poe Gallery in Los Angeles with a joint recital with composer Terry Riley and featured a performance environment created by long-time Calder collaborator (and album cover artist) Dave Muller. The CPAO funded the recording of Eclectic Currents, a 2014 album featuring 12 emerging composers who have written for the Calder Quartet. The CPAO has commissioned works with partners including the Getty Center and the Barbican Centre.
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