Nov. 21: Telegraph Quartet in Concert at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance – Performing Music Shaped by Revisitation
Photo of the Telegraph Quartet by Lisa Marie Mazzucco available in high resolution here.
Telegraph Quartet in Concert
at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance
Quartet-in-Residence
Saturday, November 21, 2026, at 7:30pm
Britton Recital Hall Earl V. Moore Building | 1100 Baits Dr. | Ann Arbor, MI
Free and Open to the Public
More Information | Livestream Here
“Precise tuning, textural variety and impassioned communication” – The Strad
Ann Arbor, MI – On Saturday, November 21, 2026, at 7:30pm, the Telegraph Quartet, quartet-in-residence with the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, presents its second university recital of the 2026–27 season in Britton Recital Hall in the Earl V. Moore Building (1100 Baits Dr.). The concert program, which highlights music shaped by the idea of revisitation, includes George Rochberg’s String Quintet (performed with cellist Norman Fischer); Franz Joseph Haydn’s String Quartet Op. 76, No. 2 “Quinten”; and Osvaldo Golijov’s Ever Yours, a string octet performed with Fischer, violist Matt Albert, and violinists River Sawchyn and Aidan Krieger. Composed in different eras, these works by Rochberg, Haydn, and Golijov each center on the idea of returning to something: musical ideas embraced before or the meanings behind emotions that influence the composers’ work.
The Telegraph (Eric Chin and Joseph Maile, violins; Pei-Ling Lin, viola; Jeremiah Shaw, cello) formed in 2013 with an equal passion for standard and contemporary chamber music repertoire. They rose quickly, winning the prestigious 2016 Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Award and the Grand Prize at the 2014 Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. Today, they perform across the United States and abroad, at venues including New York City’s Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and Town Hall; San Francisco’s Herbst Theatre; and the Philharmonie de Paris; and at festivals including the Chautauqua Institute, Music in the Vineyards in Napa Valley, and the Emilia Romagna Festival in Italy.
Initially known for his use of serialism – an approach to composing that focuses on creating sequences using pitches, rhythms, dynamics, or other musical elements – Rochberg turned to writing music with a more melodic style after the death of his son in 1964. Rochberg claimed he couldn’t fully express his grief in music that used serialism’s pattern-focused approach. His 1982 String Quintet reflects Rochberg returns to the familiarity of more traditional melodic expression, and though critics thought it was a creative regression, the music still conveys what Rochberg viewed as an expanded emotional range.
Haydn’s String Quartet Op. 76, No. 2 “Quinten” bucked the composer’s trend of composing grand, bright, vibrant music and is instead written almost entirely in D minor, which is often described as the saddest and most melancholy of all keys. The piece is nicknamed “Quinten,” meaning fifths, because of Haydn’s frequent use of this foundational interval between notes. Composed when he was in his 60s, after a lifetime of writing some of the most sophisticated, expressive, and innovative works of his time, this quartet showcases Haydn’s ability to create impressive work even with the most basic elements.
After being asked to compose an octet for the Amsterdam String Quartet Biennale, Osvaldo Golijov re-read letters Vincent Van Gogh wrote to his brother Theo. The small but consistent detail of Van Gogh’s letters closing with “ever yours” prompted Golijov to reflect on the enduring bonds between himself, the St. Lawrence Quartet, and their late first violinist, co-founder, and force of nature, Geoff Nuttall, to whom the octet is dedicated. At the time, Nuttall was battling pancreatic cancer, which would ultimately take his life. In thinking about Nuttall, Golijov came to consider the idea of Van Gogh’s “ever yours” mentality and how attention can connect to love. Through that attention-minded lens, Golijov saw a bond between Nuttall, Van Gogh, and Haydn, a composer of whom Nuttall was especially fond, ultimately connecting the three across time and creative spaces.
The Telegraph Quartet was truly honored to work with Nuttall, the St. Lawrence Quartet, and Golijov in the actual formation of the work. Golijov composed the music almost before the ensemble’s very ears, using the instrumentation of the octet and aesthetic feedback from the Telegraph’s players to stimulate his own creative process. The work was dedicated to Nuttall, who, along with the St. Lawrence and Telegraph Quartets, premiered the work at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
The Telegraph Quartet released its celebrated debut album Into the Light in 2018 and is currently recording an extensive three-album series titled 20th Century Vantage Points for Azica Records, exploring string quartets of the 20th century. The first volume, Divergent Paths (2022), features two works that (to the best of the Telegraph Quartet’s knowledge) have never been recorded on the same album before: Maurice Ravel’s String Quartet in F Major and Arnold Schoenberg’s String Quartet No. 1 in D minor, Op. 7. In August 2025, the Telegraph released the second volume, Edge of the Storm, which examines the turbulent years of war and its aftermath, 1941–1951, through string quartets by Grażyna Bacewicz, Benjamin Britten, and Mieczysław Weinberg. Volume three will be released in fall 2027. In addition, the Telegraph released a recording of the string quartets of Robert Sirota in summer 2026 (Azica Records) and will release a recording of Kenji Bunch string quartets in spring 2027 (Phenotypic Records).
Beyond the concert stage, the Telegraph Quartet seeks to spread its music through education and audience engagement. The Telegraph has given master classes, served as artists-in-residence, and launched ChamberFEAST!, a chamber music workshop in Taiwan. In fall 2020, the Telegraph launched an online video project called TeleLab, in which the ensemble collectively breaks down the components of a movement from various works for quartet. In the summers of 2022 and 2024, the Telegraph Quartet traveled to Vienna to work with Schoenberg expert Henk Guittart in conjunction with the Arnold Schoenberg Center, researching all of Schoenberg's string quartets.
For more information, visit www.telegraphquartet.com.
Concert details:
Who: Telegraph Quartet
Presented by the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance
What: Music by George Rochberg, Franz Joseph Haydn, and Osvaldo Golijov
When: Saturday, November 21, 2026, at 7:30pm
Where: Britton Recital Hall, Earl V. Moore Building, 1100 Baits Dr., Ann Arbor, MI 48109
More information: (Free and open to the public): https://smtd.umich.edu/event/21-november-2026-2/
Livestream: https://smtd.umich.edu/live-stream-britton/
Description: The Telegraph Quartet – the quartet-in-residence at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance – performs their second faculty recital of the 2026–27 season. The program, which highlights works shaped by the idea of revisiting ideas, includes George Rochberg’s String Quintet, performed with cellist Norman Fischer; Franz Joseph Haydn’s String Quartet Op. 76, No. 2 “Quinten”; and Osvaldo Golijov’s string octet Ever Yours, performed with Fischer, violist Matt Albert, and violinists River Sawchyn and Aidan Krieger.