James Tocco and Amernet String Quartet Remember Renowned Violinist Henry Meyer

James Tocco and the Amernet String Quartet

perform in memory of the late

Henry Meyer

, renowned violinist, teacher and founding member of the famed LaSalle Quartet, on

Tuesday, January 30

. The performance takes place at 8 p.m. in the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music's (CCM's) Robert J. Werner Recital Hall, and admission is free and open to the public.

Meyer, a Holocaust survivor, violin prodigy and beloved teacher, was a member of the world-famous LaSalle Quartet, which served as quartet-in-residence at CCM from 1953 to 1988. He achieved distinction not only as an ensemble member, but also as one of CCM's most respected teachers. Meyer passed away in December 2006.

Tocco, CCM professor of piano and Eminent Scholar in Chamber Music, is joined by the Amernet String Quartet in this special concert dedicated to his late friend and colleague. The evening's program features works by Schubert, Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms, which Tocco describes as "music Henry would have loved."

Opening the concert is a performance of Schubert's Notturno for violin, cello and piano, which features Tocco on piano with special guest artists Yehonatan Berick (violin) and former LaSalle Quartet member Lee Fiser (cello). Also to be featured is a musical tribute to Meyer and the LaSalle Quartet, with the playing of an audio recording of the ensemble performing one of their signature pieces, Beethoven's lush Cavatina of Op. 130.

About the Artists

James Tocco
James Tocco has a worldwide career as a soloist with orchestra, recitalist, chamber music performer and pedagogue. His repertoire of over 50 works with orchestra includes virtually the entire standard piano concerto repertoire, as well as more rarely performed works such as the Symphonie Concertante of Szymanowski, the Kammerkonzert of Alban Berg and The Age of Anxiety of Leonard Bernstein. Hailed in solo recital for his interpretations of Beethoven, Chopin and Liszt, as well as composers of the 20th century, he is one of the few pianists in the world to regularly program the keyboard works of Handel.
 
In 1973 Tocco won the International ARD Competition in Munich, and he appeared in 1975 at the Vienna Festival. Since then he has toured the globe with performances in the U.S., Canada, most of the countries of Europe and South America, the Soviet Union, Japan, Australia, South Africa and the Middle East. Solo appearances with the major orchestras of the world have been given in Berlin, Munich, London, Chicago and Los Angeles, as well as festival participation in Salzburg, Vienna, Lockenhaus, Holland, Schleswig-Holstein, Wolf Trap, Ravinia, Mostly Mozart, Santa Fe and the Hollywood Bowl. He has also recorded for Pro Arte, ECM and Deutsche Harmonia Mundi.
 
Amernet String Quartet
The Amernet String Quartet, Ensemble-in-Residence at Florida International University, has garnered worldwide praise as one of today's exceptional string ensembles. Formed in 1991, the ensemble of string players -- including violinists Misha Vitenson and Marcia Littley, violist Michael Klotz and cellist Javier Arias -- has been described by The New York Times as "an accomplished and intelligent ensemble," and by the Nürnberger Nachrichten (Germany) as "fascinating with flawless intonation, extraordinary beauty of sound, virtuosic brilliance and homogeneity of ensemble." They have performed in Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Switzerland, Korea, Mexico, Romania and the U.S. and been featured on a number of recordings. The group has received numerous accolades, including the gold medal at the Tokyo International Music Competition and first prize at the Banff International String Quartet Competition. From 1996 through 2000, the Amernet String Quartet served as quartet-in-residence at CCM, after which they served as the Corbett String Quartet in Residence at Northern Kentucky University (2000-2004).
 

Henry Meyer and the LaSalle Quartet

Henry Meyer (1923-2006) was born in Dresden, Germany, and as a young man received his musical education at the Conservatory of Dresden as well as private lessons in violin. Between 1936 and 1938, he studied in Prague as a special student at the Academy of Music and won several musical prizes. With the onset of World War II, Meyer's musical career was cut short, and he was forced into conscripted labor in Berlin and Dresden (1940-1941). He was deported to Auschwitz in 1942, then to Buchenwald and Orhdruff. Through a series of miracles, he survived the Nazi concentration camps and was freed in 1945 during the United States liberation effort.

Meyer resumed musical studies in Paris, and in 1948 immigrated to the U.S. to study at The Juilliard School. Also in that year, Meyer became a member of the LaSalle Quartet. The ensemble went on to become the quartet-in-residence at Colorado College (Colorado Springs, Co.) between 1949 and 1953, after which they moved to the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where they served as resident string quartet until 1988. They took their first international tour to Europe in 1954, launching a series of worldwide tours over the subsequent years. In 1968, the La Salle Quartet began recording for Deutsche Grammophon and received a number of esteemed recording prizes including the Grand Prix du Disque, German Recordings Prize, Edison Prize and the Italian Critics Prize, among others. The group also received multiple Grammy nominations and Post-Corbett Awards for contributions to the Cincinnati arts community.

Meyer served as professor at CCM until his retirement in 1993. He passed away in Cincinnati on December 18, 2006.

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University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
Event Details

James Tocco and the Amernet String Quartet
Henry Meyer Memorial Concert

Date & Time: Tuesday, January 30; 8 p.m.

Location: Robert J. Werner Recital Hall, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music

Program:
Schubert: Notturno for violin, cello and piano
Mozart: String Quartet No. 21 in D Major, K. 575
Beethoven: Cavatina of Op. 130
Brahms: Quintet in F Minor for Piano and Strings, Op. 34

Admission: FREE

Information and Directions: (513) 556-4183 or www.ccm.uc.edu