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Photo taken January 18, 2012 after an ESQ performance in Lyon, France.

On Tuesday, February 14th, it was announced that David Finckel would be be leaving the the Emerson Quartet at the end of the 2012-2013 season after more than thirty remarkable years.  In this special blog post, David recounts his decision and discusses his thoughts on the Emerson Quartet and his own future.

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In David’s words
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During the past year, after much soul-searching, I came to the realization that it would be sensible to make the 2012-13 season my last in the Emerson Quartet.  My colleagues of 33 years have been extremely understanding of my desire to pursue, with greater ...

When the great luthier René Morel passed away on Wednesday, it was immediately mentioned among us in the Emerson Quartet that an era had ended. This is a comment that I am sure finds resonance in the thoughts of others who knew René and were privileged to have been under his care. But just what constituted the era of René? What did he do that was so definitive and unique that he seems to have taken it with him?

Those of us lucky to have become professional string players likely remember our first visits to violin shops. Wherever they are, big or small, famous or obscure, they possess a certain magic. There is the usual presence of a multitude of instruments, some exuding age, distinction and fabulous pedigree and ...

In an unprecedented move, Musical America has selected not one but two Musicians of the Year for 2012: David Finckel and Wu Han. He is a cellist, she a pianist, and together they are the artistic directors of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, among other organizations. The Musician(s) of the Year Award, honoring excellence and achievement in the arts, are being announced in conjunction with the release of the 2012 International Directory of the Performing Arts.

Finckel and Han have managed to breathe new life into an artform all too often overlooked. They have done so not only through imaginative programming and stellar performances, together or alone, but also as founders of Music@Menlo, and as pioneering producers of their ...

A single day at the end of August separated the end and beginning of Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) tours on two continents.  David and Wu Han were the common denominators of the artist rosters, with one festival being a return visit and the other breaking new international touring ground.

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In David’s Words
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Germany: August 22-29

With a solid week of New York work under our belts after returning from Music@Menlo, Wu Han and I headed out over the Atlantic on August 22^nd for the idyllic village of Heiligendamm on the Baltic Sea.  The spectacular Grand Hotel Heiligendamm awaited our return, as did the equally spectacular ...

David and Wu Han recently returned from their annual Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center cruise, where they were joined by Society artists as well as numerous CMS patrons and enthusiasts from around the country. The cruise visited historic sites from Italy to Croatia to Greece and more.
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in David’s words…
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12 stops in 12 days

Concerts:

May 31: Palace of Diocletian, Split, Croatia (Telemann Gulliver Suite, Schubert A sonata, Bartok duos, Moszkowski Duo

June 2: Cathedral of St. Tryphon, Kotor, Montenegro  (Mozart duo Bb, Brahms e sonata)

June 4: on board (Beethoven String trio G, Beethoven

After a break of a year, the Emerson Quartet returned to South America for the second visit in its entire 35-year history.  On this trip the quartet returned to the countries of Brazil, Argentina and Chile, and added Colombia and Ecuador to its international destination map.

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in David’s words…
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MAY 20-22: SÃO PAOLO

The first stop on the Emerson String Quartet’s tour is the bustling metropolis of São Paulo, Brazil. Home to a population of over 19 million people (in the metropolitan area), São Paulo is arguably the cultural and economic capital of South America.

On Friday, April 13th, the great cellist Bernard Greenhouse passed away, at the age of 95, at his home in Wellfleet, Massachusetts.  A founding member of the Beaux Arts Trio, Greenhouse toured the world, played for millions of listeners, and left an indelible contribution to the art of cello playing.

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in David’s words…
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In sadness I write today in memory of Bernard Greenhouse.  But it also with great joy that I can express what his music making meant to me and to the music world.

Greenhouse was first and foremost a cellist of unsurpassed instrumental mastery.  His many chamber music

On tour in Corpus Christi, Texas, David Finckel posted the Cello Talks series’ final nine videos, hitting the one hundred mark and concluding his groundbreaking course in cello technique. Still a one-of-a-kind project, the Cello Talks, filmed by David in locations from Japan to Europe to Russia to Scandinavia, are viewed in growing numbers by cellists all over the world. (Photo: David with his famous pink camera that filmed virtually every Cello Talk)
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in David’s words…
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Sometimes, the most important things one does have not been asked for, nor are paid for, nor are necessarily well-known or

This past week, Music@Menlo concluded its annual Winter Residency – a celebration of Music@Menlo’s rich educational vision.  Alumni of the Chamber Music Institute and festival artistic administrator, Patrick Castillo, prepared a series of enriching programs for students at the Menlo School.

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in Wu Han’s words…
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This past week, we had the wonderful opportunity of traveling to California for Music@Menlo’s annual Winter Residency.  The Winter Residency highlights and supports the Music@Menlo’s Chamber Music Institute and educational offerings.  Through benefit

This past Sunday, Wu Han and artists from The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center performed as part of the PBS’s Live From Lincoln Center.  The performance was part of CMS’s Brahms/Beethoven Manifest Legacy festival and featured the Brahms B Major Sextet as well as Beethoven’s “Archduke” Trio.

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center participated in their second Live From Lincoln Center broadcast of the season.  I was thrilled to be participating in this nationally televised event with several of my dear CMS colleagues.  This