Beloved Piano Quartets – in memory of Joseph Kalichstein

Violinist Jaime Laredo is regarded as one of the top violinists of the late 20th century, especially notable as part of the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio. He has also been active as a conductor and educator. Performing for over six decades before audiences across the globe, Jaime Laredo has excelled in the multiple roles of soloist, conductor, recitalist, pedagogue, and chamber musician. Since his stunning orchestral debut at the age of eleven with the San Francisco Symphony, he has won the admiration and respect of audiences, critics, and fellow musicians with his passionate and polished performances. That debut inspired one critic to write: ‘In the 1920’s it was Yehudi Menuhin; in the 1930’s it was Isaac Stern, and last night it was Jaime Laredo.’ His education and development were greatly influenced by his teachers Josef Gingold and Ivan Galamian, as well as by private coaching with eminent masters Pablo Casals and George Szell. At the age of seventeen, Jaime Laredo won the prestigious Queen Elisabeth of Belgium Competition, launching his rise to international prominence. With 2009 marking the 50th anniversary of his prize, he was honored to sit on the Jury for the final round of the Competition.

Cellist Sharon Robinson, winner of the Avery Fisher Recital Award, the Piatigorsky Memorial Award, the Pro Musicis Award, and a Grammy Nominee, is recognized worldwide as a consummate artist and one of the most outstanding musicians of our time. Whether as a recitalist, soloist with orchestra, or member of the world-famous Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio, critics, audiences, and fellow musicians respond to what the Indianapolis Star has called “A cellist who has simply been given the soul of Caruso.” Her guest appearances with orchestras include the Philadelphia and Minnesota Orchestras, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Boston, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Dallas, Houston, National, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and San Francisco symphonies, and in Europe, the London Symphony, Helsinki Philharmonic, Zürich’s Tonhalle Orchestra, and the English, Scottish, and Franz Lizst chamber orchestras.

As solo artists, as the Laredo-Robinson Duo, and as members of the Kalichstein- Laredo-Robinson Trio with pianist Joseph Kalichstein for more than 40 years, Jaime Laredo and Sharon Robinson are among the busiest and most respected musicians in the world. In 2012, the husband-wife team joined the esteemed instrumental and chamber music faculty of the Cleveland Institute of Music. They have been Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle’s Artistic Directors for twenty years.

Benjamin Hochman, pianist, is a musician of exceptional versatility who regularly appears in multiple guises as an orchestral soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. In recent years he has ventured into the orchestral repertoire as a conductor. His wide range of partners and projects is matched by his curiosity, focus, and ability to communicate deeply with audiences. Since his Carnegie Hall debut as soloist with the Israel Philharmonic under the baton of Pinchas Zukerman, Hochman has enjoyed an international performing career, appearing as a soloist with the New York, Los Angeles, and Prague Philharmonic Orchestras, and the Chicago, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, and Jerusalem Symphony Orchestras under conductors including Gianandrea Noseda, Trevor Pinnock, John Storgårds, and Joshua Weilerstein. A winner of Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Career Grant, he performs at venues including Konzerthaus Wien, Berlin Konzerthaus, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, the Louvre in Paris, Liszt Academy in Budapest, Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, New York’s 92nd Street Y, and Suntory Hall in Tokyo. Festival highlights include IMS Prussia Cove, Israel Festival, Klavierfestival Ruhr, Lucerne, Marlboro, Santa Fe, Spoleto, and Verbier. Hochman’s recent and upcoming projects reflect the breadth of his musical activities, his imaginative approach to programming, and his ongoing relationships with several orchestras and festivals. He performed four Beethoven Piano Sonatas for Daniel Barenboim in December 2020 at the Pierre Boulez Saal as part of a filmed workshop and will return to the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival in July 2022.

“Mother of Peace” and “Lion” in Zulu, Nokuthula Endo Ngwenyama’s performances as an orchestral soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician garner great attention. Gramaphone proclaims her as “providing solidly shaped music of bold mesmerizing character.” As a composer, Uptown Magazine featured her “A Poet of Sound.” As a performer, Ms. Ngwenyama gained international prominence by winning the Primrose International Viola Competition at 16. The following year she won the Young Concert Artists International Auditions, which led to debuts at the Kennedy Center and the 92nd Street ‘Y.’ A recipient of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant, she has performed with orchestras and as a recitalist the world over. Presently composing and performing, this 2021-22 season Ms. Ngwenyama collaborated with the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio on the premiere of Elegy for piano quartet, lead commissioned by the Linton Chamber Series and supported by the Arizona Friends of Music, Chamber Music Monterrey Bay, Chamber Music Northwest, Chamber Music Tulsa, Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle, the Kennedy Center, Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society and the Phoenix Chamber Music Society.