The Hawthorne String Quartet is an American

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

, all four of whose members are players from the

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five (orchestras), Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in ...

. Although its repertoire ranges from the 18th century to contemporary works, the ensemble specializes in works by composers who were interned at the

Terezín concentration camp Theresienstadt Ghetto was established by the Schutzstaffel, SS during World War II in the fortress town of Terezín, in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (German occupation of Czechoslovakia, German-occupied Czechoslovakia). Theresiensta ...

during World War II and other "

Entartete Musik Degenerate music (, ) was a label applied in the 1930s by the government of Nazi Germany to certain forms of music that it considered harmful or decadence, decadent. The Nazi government's concerns about degenerate music were a part of its larger a ...

" composers.Kozinn, Allan
"Soul-Searching and Beauty From Holocaust"
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. (May 12, 2001). Retrieved 7 December 2010. Their recordings of music by three of these composers,

Pavel Haas Pavel Haas (21 June 189917 October 1944) was a Czech composer who was murdered during the Holocaust. He was an exponent of Leoš Janáček's school of composition, and also utilized elements of folk music and jazz. Although his output was not l ...

Erwin Schulhoff Erwin Schulhoff (; 8 June 189418 August 1942) was an Austro-Czech composer and pianist. He was one of the figures in the generation of European musicians whose successful careers were prematurely terminated by the rise of the Nazi regime in Germ ...

and Hans Krása, were released on the

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

''Entartete Musik'' series.

History

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

-based ensemble, the Hawthorne String Quartet takes its name from the

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

novelist

Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (né Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associat ...

and was founded in 1986. Its

violist The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the v ...

, Mark Ludwig, is also the Founder and Director of the Terezin Music Foundation.Kozinn, Allan
"Restored Works From a 'Paradise Ghetto'"
''New York Times'' (April 17, 1993). Retrieved 7 December 2010. Since its founding, the Quartet have toured both in the United States and internationally, and performed in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

in 1991 at the commemorations marking the 50th anniversary of the first transportations of Jews from that city to the Terezin concentration camp. They have since returned several times to Prague, most notably for the 2009 and 2010 editions of the

Prague Spring International Music Festival The Prague Spring International Music Festival (, commonly , Prague Spring) is a classical music festival held every year in Prague, Czech Republic, with symphony orchestras and chamber music ensembles from around the world. The first festival ...

. At the 2009 Festival, they gave a concert to mark the inauguration of the Terezín Living Legacy Commission, playing works by Josef Suk, Gideon Klein,

Charles Ives Charles Edward Ives (; October 20, 1874May 19, 1954) was an American modernist composer, actuary and businessman. Ives was among the earliest renowned American composers to achieve recognition on a global scale. His music was largely ignored d ...

Elliott Carter Elliott Cook Carter Jr. (December 11, 1908 – November 5, 2012) was an American modernist composer who was one of the most respected composers of the second half of the 20th century. He combined elements of European modernism and American " ...

and the world premiere of Pavel Zemek's ''Zvony světla'' (Bells of Light). At the 2010 Festival, they played in the world premiere of

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

's ''Clarinet Sonata'' with Thomas Martin on clarinet and the composer on piano. One of the ensemble's more unusual collaborations, was their 2009 performance at the

Tanglewood Music Festival The Tanglewood Music Festival is a music festival held every summer on the Tanglewood estate in Stockbridge and Lenox in the Berkshire Hills in western Massachusetts. The festival consists of a series of concerts, including symphonic music, c ...

where they played Hans Krása's ''String Quartet'' while artist Jim Schantz simultaneously created a landscape painting in response to the music. The Quartet also perform for the community outreach programs of both the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Terezín Chamber Music Foundation, and since 1998 have been artists-in-residence at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

, where Mark Ludwig also teaches music in the Faculty of Jewish Studies.

Members

*Mark Ludwig,

viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...

*Ronan Lefkowitz,

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

*Si-Jing Huang, violin *Sato Knudsen,

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

Discography

*''Chamber Music from Theresienstadt'' –

Channel Classics Records Channel Classics Records is a record label from the Netherlands, specializing in classical music. The managing director and producer is C. Jared Sacks, who grew up in Boston. Sacks was schooled as a professional horn player at the Oberlin Conserva ...

CCS 1691 *''Silenced Voices'' – Northeastern Records NR 248 (also toured in concert) *''

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (15 August 18751 September 1912) was a British composer and conductor. He was particularly known for his three cantatas on the epic 1855 poem ''The Song of Hiawatha'' by American Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Coler ...

: Chamber Music'' –

Koch International Koch Entertainment was an American record label and a distributor of film, television, and music. It was purchased by Canadian entertainment company Lionsgate Canada, ROW Entertainment in 2005. History First years The company began in 1975 as ...

3-7056-2 *''

and Hans Krása: String Quartets'' –

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

440 853-2Davis, Peter G
"Hear No Evil"
''

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Clay Felker and Milton Glaser in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'' a ...

'' (June 9, 1997) pp. 82-83. Retrieved 7 December 2010. *'' Schulhoff: Concertos Alla Jazz'' – Decca 444 819-2 *''Finding a Voice: Musicians in Terezin'' – Terezín Chamber Music Foundation Collection 34-001 *''Mistletoe Sax and Strings'' – North Star Music NS 164 *''Sax Across America'' – North Star Music NS 176 *''Virtuoso Trumpet'' – Kleos Classics KL 5114 *''Cradle Songs: A Collection of Lullabies from Around the World'' – IHJ Productions *''An Introduction to Entartete Musik'' – Decca 452-664-2 *''

Thomas Oboe Lee Thomas Oboe Lee (born September 5, 1945) is a Chinese American composer. Life Lee was born in Beijing, China. His family left Communist China in 1949 and lived in Hong Kong until 1959, when he moved to São Paulo, Brazil. He emigrated to the ...

String Quartets'' – Koch International 3-7452-2-III *''Concert for Terezin'' – Terezín Chamber Music Foundation, Turquoise Bee Records 34-002 *'' David L. Post String Quartets Nos. 2-4'' -

Naxos Naxos (; , ) is a Greek island belonging to the Cyclades island group. It is the largest island in the group. It was an important centre during the Bronze Age Cycladic Culture and in the Ancient Greek Archaic Period. The island is famous as ...

8.559661

Film scores

;Documentaries *''Dessa: A Legacy From Theresienstadt'' *''Entartete Musik: The Birth of a Project'' *''In the Shadow of the Reich: Nazi Medicine'' *''The Last Dance'' (

Maurice Sendak Maurice Bernard Sendak (; June 10, 1928 – May 8, 2012) was an American author and illustrator of children's books. Born to Polish-Jewish parents, his childhood was impacted by the death of many of his family members during the Holocaust. Send ...

and

Pilobolus ''Pilobolus'' is a genus of fungi that commonly grows on herbivore dung. Life cycle The life cycle of ''Pilobolus'' begins with a black sporangium that has been discharged onto a plant substrate such as grass. A herbivorous animal such as a h ...

) *''Terezin: Life from death'' * '' Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter, Jr.'' ;Feature films *''

Schindler's List ''Schindler's List'' is a 1993 American epic historical drama film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg and written by Steven Zaillian. It is based on the historical novel '' Schindler's Ark'' (1982) by Thomas Keneally. The film follows ...

'' *''

The Secret of Roan Inish ''The Secret of Roan Inish'' is a 1994 independent fantasy-adventure film written and directed by John Sayles. It is based on the 1957 novel ''Secret of the Ron Mor Skerry'', by Rosalie K. Fry. It is centered on the Irish and Orcadian folklor ...

'' ;Animated films *''Lost Momentum'' (by

Scott Snibbe Scott Snibbe (born 1969 in New York City) is an interactive media artist, author, entrepreneur, and meditation instructor who hosts the Skeptic's Path to Enlightenment meditation podcast. His first book, ''How to Train a Happy Mind'', was releas ...

)

References

External links

Terezín Music Foundation
(official website) *Doran, Elizabeth

''

The Post-Standard ''The Post-Standard'' is a newspaper serving the greater Syracuse, New York, metro area. Published by Advance Publications, it and sister website Syracuse.com are among the consumer brands of Advance Media New York, alongside NYUp.com and ''Th ...

'' (November 10, 2010) *

's official website
complete video of ''Lost Momentum''
an animated short film with a score by August Watters played by the Hawthorne String Quartet *

's official

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

channel
video excerpt of the Hawthorne String Quartet's 2009 concert
(excerpt is 3:44 minutes into the video) {{authority control Musical groups established in 1986 American string quartets Musical groups from Boston Culture of Boston 1986 establishments in Massachusetts