Dover Quartet: Brahms, Pura Fé & Dvořák
Named one of the greatest string quartets of the last 100 years by BBC Music Magazine and “the next Guarneri Quartet” by the Chicago Tribune, the two-time Grammy-nominated Dover Quartet is one of the world’s most lauded chamber ensembles. Hailed as “meticulously balanced, technically clean-as-a-whistle and intonationally immaculate” (The Strad), the Dovers return to CMNW to kick off our 2026/27 Year-Round Season. The evening begins with Brahms’s gorgeous String Quartet No. 3, followed by American Indian composer Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate’s newest string quartet orchestration of Pura Fé’s—Indigenous activist, singer-songwriter, and storyteller—Rattle Songs, and Dvořák’s joyful String Quartet No. 11 serves as a fitting finale.
“The power of the Dover Quartet to communicate a work with awesome sophistication borders on the spiritual… unmistakable glowing sound, delicious sonority.”
— Calgary Herald
Dover Quartet is represented by Curtis Artist Management at Curtis Institute of Music.
Agnes Flanagan Chapel, Lewis & Clark College
Wednesday, 10/28 • 7:30 pm
Program
Click on any piece of music below to learn more about it.
- BRAHMS String Quartet No. 3 in B-flat Major, Op. 67
BRAHMS String Quartet No. 3 in B-flat Major, Op. 67 (33’)
I. Vivace
II. Andante
III. Agitato – Allegro non troppo
IV. Poco Allegretto con variazioni- PURA FÉ “Rattle Songs” (Arr. Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate)
PURA FÉ Rattle Songs (2024) (15’)
(arranged for string quartet by Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate)
I. Shanoojhee
II. Viri Kuta
III. Haweheemo
IV. Grammah Easter’s Lullaby
V. For the Pepper (In Memory of Jim Pepper)
VI. Women’s Shuffle
VII. Great Grampah’s BanjoRattle Songs is a suite of compositions created by the Tuscarora vocalist, Pura Fé, for the ensemble Ulali. Pura Fé’s Tuscarora cousin, Jennifer Kreisberg, and Maya/Apache friend, Soni Moreno, are the other two vocalists of the group. In 1994, this Native trio made history when they released their album, Mahk Jchi (Our Hearts). This album is a unique work of genius, where Native songs are modernized through innovative arrangements and stunningly rich harmonies. Their work had a powerfully deep impact on my personal vision as a Native composer and I am privileged that they are my friends.
Chickasaw music is based in turtle shell shaking, as is our percussion for stomp dancing and social songs. The Tuscarora people share a very similar shell shaking tradition, as do most Native woodland tribes. In Rattle Songs, Ulali brought together songs from different parts of Indian Country and brilliantly couched them in traditional woodland shell shaking styles.
Camden Shaw, cellist of the Dover Quartet, also happens to be a fan of the Mahk Jchi album. Upon his discovery that I have an affinity for Ulali, he asked if I might be interested in orchestrating Rattle Songs for string quartet. My immediate acceptance and enthusiasm could not be overstated. After consulting with Pura Fé, I have created these orchestrations that are classically impressionistic in a post-modern style. I make no deliberate attempt to imitate the exact sound of rattles from the original songs; rather, I have created a new home for them in the string quartet. Pura Fé created Rattle Songs as a homage to her Native North American cousins and it is my hope that my orchestrations create another layer of honoring our people.
From the liner notes of Mahk Jchi:
“In ancient times a Tuscarora woman carried the name ‘Ulali’ for her beautiful voice. ‘Ulali’ is a songbird (Wood Thrush) name given to Pura Fé, Soni, and Jennifer, by Lawrence Dunmore of the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation in North Carolina. ‘Ulali’ is a First Nations women’s a cappella trio, that sing in many styles and languages of their people of the Western Hemisphere.”—© Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate
- DVOŘÁK String Quartet No. 11 in C Major, Op. 61, B. 121
DVOŘÁK String Quartet No. 11 in C Major, Op. 61, B. 121 (35’)
I. Allegro
II. Poco adagio e molto cantabile
III. Scherzo
IV. Finale (Vivace)The music in this work differs fundamentally from Dvořák’s previous string quartet with its subtitle “Slavonic.” In his new quartet the composer did not use a single melody that might have been described as “Slavonic;” for his inspiration he looked to the likes of Beethoven and Schubert. With its absence of Slavic undertones, the Quartet in C Major is fairly atypical for Dvořák. Nevertheless, it is a testimony of the next stage in his development and is undeniably one of Dvořák’s finest chamber pieces. The quartet betrays a Classical sense of equilibrium and great intellectual depth, clearly profiled thematic material, and a high level of formal compactness in all four movements. The first movement in sonata form is surprising for its resourceful development of the main subject, the latter’s various transformations, and the remarkable harmonies overall. The second movement, with its dialogic development of the chief motif and the impulsively chromatic passages, is truly a gem among Dvořák’s adagios. The Beethoven model is most tangible in the third, scherzo movement, particularly in the brusque rhythms of its main section. The work culminates in the fourth movement, whose sense of boisterous joy appears to subside before the close, only to end brazenly in a short, rousing coda.
—© Courtesy of www.antonin-dvorak.cz
Artists
-
Dover Quartet
String Quartet
-
Joel Link, violin
Bryan Lee, violin
Julianne Lee, viola
Camden Shaw, celloPraised for its “sublime playing” by The New York Times, the Dover Quartet has earned a place among the defining string quartets of its generation. Its performances unite extraordinary depth, precision, and power with the “full and glowing sound” admired by BBC Music Magazine, which named it one of the greatest string quartets of the last 100 years.
The Dover Quartet’s 2026-27 season brings the ensemble to leading stages and series across the country, including Chamber Music Northwest, the National Gallery of Art, Vivo Performing Arts, the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, and Cal Performances. The season also includes collaborations with Edgar Meyer, Michelle Cann, and Marc-André Hamelin.
The Quartet enters its next era with renewed purpose. Following first violinist Joel Link’s 2025 appointment as Concertmaster of The Cleveland Orchestra, where he holds the Blossom-Lee Concertmaster Chair, the Quartet reaffirmed its commitment to continuing together in its current configuration and to performing chamber music at the highest level, without compromise. Across the ensemble, the members’ individual careers also encompass roles with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Escher Quartet, as well as extensive work in chamber music and teaching. These distinct musical lives deepen their shared work, and the Dover remains a central artistic commitment for all four musicians.
At the center of the Quartet’s recent work is Woodland Songs, released in 2025 on Curtis Studio. The album features the world-premiere recording of Abokkoli’ Taloowa’ (Woodland Songs), commissioned by the Quartet from Chickasaw composer Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate, and Tate’s string-quartet orchestration of Rattle Songs by Indigenous singer-songwriter Pura Fé. Dvořák’s “American” Quartet completes an album that illuminates connections among Indigenous traditions and American musical life—a story profiled by NPR Music.
The Quartet’s acclaimed discography includes two Grammy-nominated recording projects: the three-volume Beethoven Complete String Quartets for Cedille Records and The Schumann Quartets for Azica Records. The Strad praised the Beethoven cycle as “meticulously balanced, technically clean-as-a-whistle and intonationally immaculate.” The Quartet’s distinctions include a sweep of all prizes at the 2013 Banff International String Quartet Competition, the Avery Fisher Career Grant, and Chamber Music America’s Cleveland Quartet Award.
The Dover Quartet’s artistic identity is rooted in a living tradition of American quartet playing, passed directly from one generation of musicians to the next. Formed at the Curtis Institute of Music in 2008 and further shaped by intensive study at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, the Quartet worked closely with Shmuel Ashkenasi, James Dunham, Norman Fischer, Kenneth Goldsmith, Joseph Silverstein, Arnold Steinhardt, Michael Tree, and Peter Wiley. Through these relationships, the Dover developed deep connections to the traditions of the Guarneri, Cleveland, and Vermeer quartets.
In 2020, the Dover was named the inaugural Penelope P. Watkins Ensemble in Residence at Curtis, establishing a new model that brought together teaching, performance, and technology. The Quartet’s members continue their relationship with Curtis as faculty members, helping to pass the traditions that shaped them to a new generation of chamber musicians. The Quartet takes its name from Dover Beach by fellow Curtis alumnus Samuel Barber.
Upcoming Concerts & Events
- Dover Quartet: Brahms, Pura Fé & Dvořák (currently selected)