IMG Artists is thrilled to announce that is now the global general management for the incomparable Emerson String Quartet. IMGA and ESQ have long enjoyed a rewarding partnership and are delighted to expand that relationship worldwide. Vice President and Artist Manager Linda Petrikova will remain General Manager from the company’s New York office. London-based Artist Manager Elena Kostova will represent the Quartet throughout Europe.
Eugene Drucker, violinist for the Quartet, said:
“We have recently streamlined our European representation, so that IMG Artists has truly become our global management. Though we look forward to the continuation of our work with national managements in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Denmark, all of those agencies will coordinate their efforts through the IMG office in London, which from now on will book our concerts directly with presenters in all other European countries. IMGA’s offices in New York and London are in frequent contact and work harmoniously together; having received invaluable assistance from IMG Artists during the past few decades in tours of North and South America, Asia, New Zealand and Australia, as well as the UK, Ireland and France, we believe that this consolidation will lead to a more efficient booking process for presenters and a smoother touring experience for us. We thank everyone who has been involved in this transition for their patience, optimism and confidence in the Emerson String Quartet.”
Linda Petrikova said:
“We are proud of and honored by our longstanding relationship with one of the world’s most accomplished string quartets. This season has been a significant one for the Emerson in many ways: the quartet celebrated their 40th anniversary together, launched the new Decca Gold label with their latest release following a box set of their complete DG recordings, and premiered “Shostakovich and the Black Monk,” an original music and theater production. We look forward to strengthening our relationship with the quartet further in Europe, in partnership with local agencies.”
The Emerson String Quartet (violinists Eugene Drucker and Philip Setzer; violist Lawrence Dutton; and cellist Paul Watkins)has amassed an unparalleled list of achievements over four decades: more than thirty acclaimed recordings, nine Grammys® (including two for Best Classical Album), three Gramophone Awards, the Avery Fisher Prize, Musical America’s Ensemble of the Year and collaborations with many of the greatest artists of our time.
The arrival of Paul Watkins in 2013 has had a profound effect on the Emerson Quartet. Mr. Watkins, a distinguished soloist, award-winning conductor, and devoted chamber musician, joined the ensemble in its 37th season, and his dedication and enthusiasm have infused the Quartet with a warm, rich tone and a palpable joy in the collaborative process. The reconfigured group has been praised by critics and fans alike around the world. “The Emerson brought the requisite virtuosity to every phrase. But this music is equally demanding emotionally and intellectually, and the group’s powers of concentration and sustained intensity were at least as impressive” (The New York Times).
Highlights of the 2017-2018 season include a North American tour with pianist Evgeny Kissin and performances of The Black Monk, a theatrical retelling of Shostakovich’s obsessive mission to adapt Chekhov’s play in the midst of Stalin’s Soviet state.”
The ensemble celebrated its 40th Anniversary season in 2016/17. Highlights of this milestone year reflecting the aspects of their venerable artistry including the release of the first album on Universal Music Classics’ new label Decca Gold Chaccones and Fantasias: Music of Britten and Purcess and a 52-CD luxury box set of their entire Deustsche Grammophon discography; engagements with illustrious soprano Renée Fleming at the Kennedy Center, Tanglewood and Walt Disney Concert Hall; concerts celebrating their 38th season at the Smithsonian Institution; celebratory concerts with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in New York City, Chicago and Purchase, NY; the New York premiere of Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Shroud; collaborations with artists including the Calidore Quartet, clarinettist David Shifrin and cellist Clive Greensmith. They also toured throughout Europe, South America and Asia. The season also marked a special reunion with former Emerson cellist David Finckel. They were also the Artistic Advisors for Wolf Trap’s Chamber Music at The Barns in Virginia.
Formed in 1976 and based in New York City, the Emerson was one of the first quartets whose violinists alternated in the first chair position. The Emerson Quartet, which took its name from the American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, is Quartet-in-Residence at Stony Brook University. During the spring of 2016, full-time Stony Brook faculty members Philip Setzer and Lawrence Dutton received the honor of Distinguished Professor, and part-time faculty members Eugene Drucker and Paul Watkins were awarded the title of Honorary Distinguished Professor. In January 2015, the Quartet received the Richard J. Bogomolny National Service Award, Chamber Music America’s highest honor, in recognition of its significant and lasting contribution to the chamber music field.
