USU’s string music recital promotes new quartet and welcomes listening ears

Kristen Steiner

Audience members were greeted with warm sounds and lovely melodies as the String Chamber Music Recital began this evening at 7:30 at the Caine Performance Hall at Utah State University.

“This is the capstone of a semester of work of our strings,” said Anne Francis Bayless, USU cello professor.

Beyond the performances of USU string players, the Erevna Quartet, the Caine Undergraduate Research Fellowship Quartet, previewed their skill set that will be shown off at their spring recital on April 25.

The Undergraduate Research Fellowship was designed many years ago for high-ability students who are interested in graduate work or professional study after finishing their graduate degree.

“It identifies exceptional freshman who will be doing research outside of the classroom,” Bayless said.

Until this year, however, there was no such program for the performing arts in regards to string instruments, so with the help of the Fry Street Quartet, and the Caine College of the Arts, the fellowship program and the arts college combined programs and introduced the Caine Undergraduate Research Fellowship Quartet.

The quartet has worked closely with the Fry Street Quartet throughout the year and has had many chances to feature their skills and uphold their contract as this years Caine Undergraduate Research Fellowship Quartet.

The quartet has also had many opportunities to teach and showcase their talents by participating in additional performances, networking with other undergraduate research fellows, holding dorm concert series, giving master classes to surrounding high schools and doing traditional reach outs by going to schools within the valley to teach students a variety of things.

“They have been so motivated and so hard working,” Bayless said. “They have gone above and beyond what they have been asked to do.”

Unlike the Undergraduate Research Fellowship, the quartet fellowship members were pulled from upper divisional classes. Sadly, two of them will be graduating this coming spring meaning two new members will be joining the group next year, Bayless said.

The fellowship quartet members, Brynn Seegmiller and Amanda Marshall on violin, Gavon Peck on viola and Stephen Mitton on cello, left the audience captivated by their exceptional performance this evening along with all of the other students who performed.

“I felt like I was engaged with the performance the whole time,” said Sara Mason, a USU piano performance major.

Works featured tonight were that of Franz Joseph Haydn, W.A. Mozart, Antonin Dvorak and many more.

For more information regarding the quartet or fellowship program, visit http://rgs.usu.edu/news/articleID=27618