The Verona Quartet with Yaron Kohlberg

The Cleveland Museum of Art has partnered with the Cleveland Chamber Music Society to present the Verona Quartet, featuring pianist Yaron Kohlberg. Tickets must be purchased on the Cleveland Chamber Music Society’s website (opens in a new tab). 

Acclaimed as an “outstanding ensemble . . . cohesive yet full of temperament” (The New York Times), the Verona Quartet has firmly established itself among the most distinguished ensembles on the chamber music scene today. The group’s singular sense of purpose earned them Chamber Music America’s coveted 2020 Cleveland Quartet Award and a reputation for its “bold interpretive strength, robust characterization and commanding resonance” (Calgary Herald).

The Verona Quartet has appeared across four continents, captivating audiences at such renowned venues as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, Jordan Hall, Wigmore Hall, and the Melbourne Recital Hall. The group has also performed at a number of festivals, including La Jolla Summerfest, Chamber Music Northwest, Caramoor, and the Texas Music Festival, Bravo! Vail, and with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. 

A string quartet for the 21st century, the Verona Quartet champions the rich breadth of the string quartet repertoire from the time-honored canon through contemporary classics. Notable commissions and premieres include works by composers Julia Adolphe, Texu Kim, and Sebastian Currier, as well as Michael Gilbertson’s Pulitzer Prize–nominated Quartet. In 2023, the Verona Quartet celebrated several world premieres, including a work for string quartet, yangqin (Chinese dulcimer), and dancer by Cheng Jin Koh, commissioned by the Smithsonian Institution in honor of the centennial of the Freer Gallery of Art.

In addition to promoting contemporary music, the quartet strives for a dynamic, imaginative approach to collaboration and programming that champions cross-cultural and interdisciplinary enterprises. Past projects include a live-performance art installation with artist Ana Prvački, performances with dancers from Brooklyn’s Dance Heginbotham, artistic exchanges with traditional Emirati poets in the UAE, and a collaboration with Grammy-winning folk trio I’m with Her.

“Outstanding ensemble of young musicians . . . cohesive yet full of temperament . . . vibrant, intelligent.” (The New York Times)

Yaron Kohlberg ignites audiences through traditional and nontraditional performances, develops creative programming, and supports emerging artists, making him a leader and innovator in the world of classical music.

Kohlberg often combines storytelling and transcriptions of popular tunes with traditional classical masterpieces, thrilling audiences and critics with his virtuosity and unique quality of sound. NPR raved, “When the music ends, if you’re not deeply moved by the depth of Kohlberg’s insight, you might want to check your pulse.” 

Kohlberg is president of Piano Cleveland, the organizing body of the Cleveland International Piano Competition. Original programming he has cocreated includes the upcoming Artist Development Program, an enrichment and professional development program for top-tier young pianists; the Listening Series, an in-person and virtual event that takes audiences from the couch to the concert hall as musicians take a deep dive into their work; and Virtu(al)oso, a global piano competition that raised more than $75,000 to support pianists during the pandemic.

Forging connections through collaboration is a hallmark of Kohlberg’s work. He has appeared as a soloist with numerous orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, the Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic and Jerusalem Symphony Orchestras, the Beijing and Chengdu Symphony Orchestras, the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, and the Palermo Teatro Massimo Orchestra in Italy, working with conductors Thomas Sondergard, Jahja Ling, Roman Kofman, En Shao, Steven Byess, and Ryan McAdams.

Program:

Alessandro Scarlatti: Sonata a Quattro No. 4 (1720) 

Philip Glass: String Quartet No. 2, “Company” 

Leoš Janáček: String Quartet No. 1, “The Kreutzer Sonata” 

Antonín Dvořák: Quintet for Piano and Strings in A Major, op. 81 

The views expressed by performers during this event are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Cleveland Museum of Art.