Chamichian Endowment brings Quartet San Francisco to the Staples Family Concert Hall

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Quartet San Francisco performed tango, jazz and other popular music on campus Thursday night.

About 130 attended the performance in the Music Building’s Staples Family Concert Hall.

The Grammy-nominated string quartet was brought to Central Michigan University as part of a celebration of the Souren L. Chamichian, M.D. Artist-in-Residence Endowment’s 20th anniversary. The Chamichian Endowment seeks to provide an avenue for well-known musical performers and innovators to come to the School of Music.

Quartet San Francisco’s ensemble on Thursday night consisted of violinist and composer Jeremy Cohen, violinists Alisa Rose and Keith Lawrence and cellist Kelley Maulbetsch. The group’s focus on non-traditional forms of music for string instruments allowed them to venture into playing forms of upbeat jazz and tango in the concert’s first half.

The enthusiasm the quartet showed impressed some of the audience.

“They seem to really love the music they play,” said Ypsilanti senior Andy Strodtman. “I don’t always see that in the performances I go to.”

Istanbul graduate student Ayca Cetin said the quartet’s cohesion was impressive.

“I liked how well they managed to stay together,” Cetin said. “It seemed like they were sharing the same pulse, the same rhythm and the same energy.”

The second half of the concert contained jazz and blues-influenced music as well as several pieces of popular music such as The Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” and Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit.”  Cohen said the latter song was chosen so the group would carry some of San Francisco’s musical heritage with them.

“Every string quartet ought to have a little rock ’n’ roll in their repertoire,” Cohen said.

The quartet received a standing ovation upon the end of the program, leading to an encore performance of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

Mount Pleasant resident Helen Chase said she considered the concert part of a continued success of the programs brought to CMU by the Chamichian Endowment.

“I’ve come to each of the endowment concerts for years and will continue looking forward to them in the future,” Chase said.