Nov. 14: The Jupiter String Quartet Presented by Hamilton College's Performing Arts Series
Photo of the Jupiter Quartet by Todd Rosenberg available in high resolution at www.jensenartists.com/artists-profiles/jupiter-string
The Jupiter String Quartet Presented by
Hamilton College's Performing Arts Series
Performing Music by
Franz Joseph Haydn, Salina Fisher, Florence Price, and Robert Schumann
Friday, November 14, 2025 at 7:30pm
Wellin Hall at Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts
198 College Hill Road | Clinton, NY
Tickets and Information
“an ensemble of eloquent intensity, has matured into one of the mainstays of the American chamber-music scene.” – The New Yorker
Clinton, NY – On Friday, November 14, 2025 at 7:30pm, the Jupiter String Quartet – internationally acclaimed winners of the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, who are known for their “compelling” performances (BBC Music Magazine) – will be presented in concert by the Hamilton College's Performing Arts Series in Wellin Hall at Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts (198 College Hill Road).
Based at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and giving concerts all over the country, the Jupiter String Quartet is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Mélanie Clapiès and Meg Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (Meg’s older sister), and cellist Daniel McDonough (Meg’s husband, Liz’s brother-in-law). Founded in 2001, the ensemble is firmly established as an important voice in the world of chamber music, and exudes an energy that is at once friendly, knowledgeable, and adventurous.
The Jupiter Quartet brings its well-honed musical chemistry to three works shaped by bold musicality and deeply meaningful thematic inspirations, written between the late 18th century and the present day, including String Quartet in C Major, Op. 33 No. 3 “The Bird” by Franz Joseph Haydn; Heal by Salina Fisher; Selections from Five Folksongs in Counterpoint by Florence Price; and Quartet in A minor, Op. 41 No. 1 by Robert Schumann.
Of performing together with Mélanie and bringing this program to Hamilton College’s Performing Arts Series:
The “Bird” is one of the most popular of Haydn’s six Opus 33 string quartets. It is filled with joy and playfulness, often imitating the sprightly and singsong qualities of birds (hence the nickname). Haydn’s good-natured creativity is on full display here, throughout the vivacity of the opening and closing movements, the quirky scherzo, and the wonderfully lyrical slow movement.
Salina Fisher is an award-winning New Zealand composer who draws from her background as a multi-instrumentalist of mixed Japanese heritage. Her highly evocative music often involves collaborations, notably with taonga pūoro practitioners.
Of the inspiration behind her 2021 work Heal Fisher says:
“During a year of collective and personal challenges, I became interested in the process of healing and its relation to music making,’ says Fisher. ‘Can composing be part of a healing process? What does it mean to share physical space and sound? This piece is a reflection on these kinds of questions and seems to find space for breath and unity’.”
Florence Price’s Five Folksongs in Counterpoint stems from historically meaningful folk tunes and spirituals written or made popular throughout the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. Four of the five movements are based on the following songs: “Calvary,” “My Darling Clementine,” “Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes,” and “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” The fifth is a blending of various folk songs in one. Initially, Price only composed three movements, before adding two more around 1950. Each movement embraces sophisticated and precise contrapuntal phrasing, transforming the familiar form of each folksong but keeping each theme intact.
Composed in the summer of 1842, Robert Schumann’s Quartet in A minor, Op. 41 No. 1 is dedicated to Felix Mendelssohn, along with the two other string quartets of Opus 41. He wrote it while studying the contrapuntal style of Beethoven, Mozart, and Haydn. —. The work opens with a bittersweetly beautiful Ándante espressivo, which finally transforms into a more dance-like Allegro. The Scherzo that follows is full of energetically galloping rhythms. The third movement is a beautiful set of Adagio variations, full of the dramatic lyricism that Schumann invokes so well. The work closes with a flashy Presto, with all four musicians’ fingers flying to keep up with the energetic pace.
More About Jupiter String Quartet: The Jupiter Quartet has performed in some of the world’s finest halls, including New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, London’s Wigmore Hall, Boston’s Jordan Hall, Mexico City's Palacio de Bellas Artes, Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center and Library of Congress, Austria’s Esterhazy Palace, and Seoul’s Sejong Chamber Hall. Their major music festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival and School, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival, Rockport Music Festival, Caramoor International Music Festival, Music at Menlo, Tucson Winter Chamber Music Festival, the Banff Centre, the Seoul Spring Festival, and many others. In addition to their performing career, they have been artists-in-residence at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign since 2012, where they maintain private studios and direct the chamber music program.
Their chamber music honors and awards include the grand prizes in the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition; the Young Concert Artists International auditions in New York City; the Cleveland Quartet Award from Chamber Music America; an Avery Fisher Career Grant; and a grant from the Fromm Foundation. From 2007-2010, they were in residence at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Chamber Music Two.
The Jupiter String Quartet feels a strong connection to the core string quartet repertoire; they have presented the complete Bartok and Beethoven string quartets on numerous occasions. Also deeply committed to new music, they have commissioned string quartets from Nathan Shields, Stephen Andrew Taylor, Michi Wiancko, Syd Hodkinson, Hannah Lash, Dan Visconti, and Kati Agócs; a quintet with baritone voice by Mark Adamo; and a piano quintet by Pierre Jalbert.
The quartet's latest album is a collaboration with the Jasper String Quartet (Marquis Classics, 2021), produced by Grammy-winner Judith Sherman. This collaborative album features the world premiere recording of Dan Visconti’s Eternal Breath, Felix Mendelssohn’s Octet in E-flat, Op. 20, and Osvaldo Golijov’s Last Round. The Arts Fuse acclaimed, “This joint album from the Jupiter String Quartet and Jasper String Quartet is striking for its backstory but really memorable for its smart program and fine execution.” The quartet’s discography also includes numerous recordings on labels including Azica Records and Deutsche Grammophon. In fall 2024, the Jupiter Quartet will record their next album with Judith Sherman, featuring the world premiere recordings of Michi Wiancko’s To Unpathed Waters, Undreamed Shores, Stephen Taylor’s Chaconne/Labyrinth, and Kati Agócs's Imprimatur, which were all composed for the Jupiters.
The quartet chose its name because Jupiter was the most prominent planet in the night sky at the time of its formation and the astrological symbol for Jupiter resembles the number four.
For more information, visit www.jupiterquartet.com.
For Calendar Editors:
Description: The Jupiter Quartet, described by The New Yorker as having “technical finesse and rare expressive maturity,” is presented in concert by Hamilton College's Performing Arts Series. The award-winning ensemble will perform a program blending the emotive and image-driven melodies of traditional works with purpose-driven music from the present day. The concert program will include: String Quartet in C Major, Op. 33 No. 3 “The Bird” by Franz Joseph Haydn; Heal by Salina Fisher; Selections from Five Folksongs in Counterpoint by Florence Price; and Quartet in A minor, Op. 41 No. 1 by Robert Schumann.
Concert details:
Who: Jupiter String Quartet
Presented by Hamilton College's Performing Arts Series
What: Music by Franz Joseph Haydn, Salina Fisher, Florence Price, and Robert Schumann
When: Friday, November 14, 2025 at 7:30pm
Where: Wellin Hall at Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts, 198 College Hill Road, Clinton, NY 13323
Tickets and information: www.hamilton.edu/campuslife/arts-at-hamilton/performingarts