In Brief: February 20

Quince Contemporary Vocal Ensemble to perform at BGSU

Acclaimed new music quartet Quince Contemporary Vocal Ensemble will perform at the University on Feb. 27 as part of the Music at the Forefront series sponsored by BGSU’s MidAmerican Center for Contemporary Music. The group, which features three graduates of the College of Musical Arts, will perform music by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang. The concert is at 8 p.m. in Bryan Recital Hall at the Moore Musical Arts Center and is free and open to the public.

With the precision and flexibility of modern chamber musicians, Quince specializes in experimental repertoire that is changing the paradigm of contemporary vocal music. Described as "a new force of vocal excellence and innovation" by The Brooklyn Rail, Quince continually pushes the boundaries of traditional vocal ensemble literature.

 As dedicated advocates of new music, Quince regularly commissions new works, providing a wider exposure for the music of living composers. They recently received a Chamber Music America award to commission a new song cycle by composer LJ White, and will be releasing an album of contemporary vocal repertoire on New Focus Recordings early this year.

In 2016, Quince was featured on the KODY Festival Lublin, Poland, in collaboration with Lang and Beth Morrison Productions. They have also appeared on the Outpost Concert Series, the Philip Glass: Music with Friends concert at the Issue Project Room in Brooklyn, and the SONiC Festival in New York. During the 2016-17 season, they will collaborate with Eighth Blackbird and Third Coast Percussion on performances of “Music for 18 Musicians” by Steve Reich, and will be presented on the Ear Taxi and Frequency Festivals in Chicago.

Comprised of vocalists Elizabeth Pearse (soprano), Kayleigh Butcher (mezzo soprano), Amanda DeBoer Bartlett (soprano), and Carrie Henneman Shaw (soprano), Quince thrives on unique musical challenges and genre-bending contemporary repertoire.

Music at the Forefront is an annual concert series featuring performances by accomplished and innovative performers of contemporary music. For more information, contact Kurt Doles at the MidAmerican Center for Contemporary Music at 419-372-2685 or kdoles@bgsu.edu.