Internationally acclaimed violist Marcus Thompson will perform at MIT with six of the world's finest string ensembles in a two-year series of concerts planned to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth in 1756.
The Guest Artist Series of free concerts, to be held in Kresge Auditorium, will begin with the St. Petersburg String Quartet on Sept. 30 at 8 p.m., performing Mozart's Quintet in B flat, K.174 with Thompson. The concert will also include Shostakovich's Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Op. 110 and Dvorak's Quartet in F major, Op. 96 ("American").
Thompson, the Robert R. Taylor Professor of Music at MIT, has appeared throughout the Americas, Europe and the Far East. He performed the West Coast premiere of Institute Professor John Harbison's Viola Concerto with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra; the Chicago premiere with the Chicago Sinfonietta; and the Boston premiere with the New England Conservatory Honors Orchestra.
Born and raised in the Bronx, Thompson earned his doctorate degree at the Juilliard School. At MIT, he heads programs in chamber music and performance studies. He is also a member of the viola faculty at the New England Conservatory of Music and violist in the Boston Chamber Music Society.
The 2005-06 MIT Guest Artist Series will also feature Thompson with the Endellion String Quartet (Oct. 28) and the Biava String Quartet (Feb. 17).
In 2006-07, the series will feature Thompson with the Jupiter String Quartet, the Vogler String Quartet, and a third quartet still to be announced.
The Guest Artist Series is presented by MIT's Music and Theater Arts Section. For more information, call x3-9800.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on September 28, 2005 (download PDF).
