On Saturday, October 15th, the Newport String Quartet will open its signature Newport County Concert Series at St. Columba’s Chapel in Middletown.
The quartet will perform masterworks by Haydn and Ravel, alongside two brilliant 21st century compositions by Gabriela Lena Frank and Evrim Demirel – both of which take inspiration from musical antiquity.
This concert, which takes place at 2 pm, marks violinist Kenneth Trotter’s first public performance with the quartet, according to Newport String Quartet. Trotter is a violinist from Knoxville, Tennessee. Before joining the Newport String Quartet, he had a varied freelance career in the New York City area and was a founding member of the Puck Quartet, which had a particular focus on audience & community engagement, working with living composers, and interactive performances. He holds a Bachelor’s in Music from SUNY Purchase where he studied with Carmit Zori and Laurie Smukler.
The Newport String Quartet is the resident ensemble of The Newport String Project, a chamber music performance and youth mentoring initiative that aims to build a community that crosses boundaries of generation, heritage, and economic circumstances through access to inspiring musical experiences for all.
The project aims to strengthen the social and cultural fabric of the wider Newport community by presenting a professional chamber music concert series, featuring both classical and traditional music styles. Now in its tenth season, the project focuses on growing the organization so that it can support a long-term, professional chamber music residency that builds authentic relationships between professional musicians and the community at large.
Reservations are recommended. Tickets start at $20 and can be purchased by visiting www.newportstringproject.org.
