Modigliani Quartet Union College

Sunday, October 25, 2026 - 3:00 PM

Radio France’s Artists-in-Residence, the Parisian ensemble makes its highly anticipated return to the series after a four-year hiatus. Making regular appearances at Carnegie Hall and in important venues around the world, the quartet will bring its “immense music gifts” (Washington Post) to works of Haydn and Schumann with a recent piece by the Czech iconoclast.

Program:
- Mařatka: Amedea
- Haydn: G‑major Quartet, Op. 77, No. 1
- Schumann: A‑major Quartet, Op. 41, No. 3

Sponsored by an Anonymous Donor

Runtime: 2 hours

Union College
Memorial Chapel
Schenectady, NY

General admission seating — doors open 45 minutes before the concert. All kids and college students admitted free at the door.

The Paris-based Modigliani Quartet celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2023. They are regular guests at major venues and chamber music series. In 2017 they were the first string quartet to perform in the big hall of the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. In 2020 the quartet became artistic directors of the string quartet festival "Vibre! Quatuors à Bordeaux" and the Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition, and they are founders and artistic directors of the Saint-Paul-de-Vence Festival. Since autumn 2023 they have been teaching the first String Quartet class at the École Normale de Musique de Paris Alfred Cortot.

Modigliani Quartet has recorded for the Mirare label since 2008 and released 13 CDs. In January 2024 their album of quartets by Grieg and Smetana was published and received enthusiastic press: “The French Quatuor Modigliani brings these highly emotional works to life with energy, color and glowing passion.” The recording was also featured in the bestseller list 2-2024 (category chamber music) at the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik. In the 2024/2025 season the quartet planned to record all 16 Beethoven string quartets. Other season highlights noted include a North America tour in October 2024 and concerts at the Laeiszhalle (Hamburg), L’Auditori (Barcelona), Konserthus Stockholm, and the Schubertiade Schwarzenberg.

Thanks to private sponsors, Modigliani Quartet plays on four Italian instruments:
- Amaury Coeytaux: 1715 violin by Stradivari
- Loïc Rio: 1780 violin by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini
- Laurent Marfaing: 1660 viola by Luigi Mariani
- François Kieffer: 1706 cello by Matteo Goffriller

Modigliani Quartet thanks SPEDIDAM for its help.