
Kronos Quartet
Five Decades
MICHAEL GORDON | New Work (World Premiere, Cal Performances Co-commission) |
PENI CANDRA RINI | New Work (World Premiere, Cal Performances Co-commission) |
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Bay Area’s own Kronos Quartet—the groundbreaking ensemble that helped reinvent the string quartet for our global, connected, contemporary world through cross-cultural and cross-genre collaborations, ambitious commissioning projects, and enduring partnerships with living composers. The concert features two world premieres commissioned for the quartet’s anniversary from Michael Gordon and Peni Candra Rini. In his newest collaboration with Kronos, Gordon takes inspiration from Haydn’s scherzos to create a suite of lighthearted miniatures. Indonesian composer Candra Rini was among the artists selected to participate in the visionary Kronos Fifty for the Future initiative, which commissioned 50 international composers to create scores made available as a resource at no cost for future generations of string quartet players. Her new work includes shadow puppets, original artwork, and field recordings inspired by musical environments and cultures across the Indonesian archipelago. Rini will join the Kronos members here for the world premiere. “No one is ever going to say that Kronos Quartet is satisfied with the string quartet status quo” (The New York Times).
Video
Beyond the Stage
A fascinating deep dive into some of the most anticipated new works on the season in this 2023–24 Season Feature.