Orion Quartet embarks upon Beethoven set

Beethoven's string quartets are often held up as examples of his finest work. This set of 17 quartets spans most of Beethoven's career and a wide range of his musical styles.\nOver the next several months, students at IU will have the rare opportunity to hear them all.\nThe Orion String Quartet will be performing the entire Beethoven cycle in a series of six concerts. The first of these will be at 4 p.m. Sunday in Auer Hall.\nThis will not be the first performance of this magnitude by the Orion Quartet -- they did the entire Beethoven cycle in a series of concerts in New York called "Beethoven 2000" that year. Each of these concerts, done in conjunction with the Lincoln Center were free and open to the public, and each concert benefited a different New York arts organization.\nViolinist and member of the Orion Quartet Todd Phillips said he was surprised at the wide range of people who attended. \n"We didn't just get the normal classical concert crowd," Phillips said. "There were taxi drivers there, and young people, and tons of students. It really showed a unique thing about this type of music… that a set of pieces of the most sophisticated music ever written can appeal not only to those educated in it, but to anyone with any interest at all."\nFor a group with a reputation like the Orion's, which is celebrating its 15th anniversary season this year, the Beethoven quartets were a logical step.\n"They're pieces that any string quartet that stays together for a length of time will do anyway," Phillips said. "They are a centerpiece of quartet repertoire. It's really a unique experience to see the whole set of them in perspective."\nThe faculty of the IU School of Music is particularly looking forward to the concerts. Professor Atar Arad is a viola professor and director of the string quartet seminar, a class devoted to helping student string quartets gain both performance practice and in-depth experience with repertoire. He said he was especially excited for the educational opportunity the series will provide. \n"It is so great for the students to have the Orion come," he said. "It's as if you're bringing Manchester United (one of Britain's top soccer teams) to play at IU. We're not in New York, so students can't get exposed as often to truly elite performers. We have the dean (of the music school) to thank for seeing the need for this sort of thing."\nEach individual quartet of Beethoven's can stand alone. But Arad said he is interested in the bigger picture.\n"I really hope that we will do more complete cycles in the future," he said. "It's really the best way to get the full impact of a musical movement, and there is no bigger movement than Beethoven. It's really the deepest musical thought anyone ever had."\nIU professor Robert Green, who is teaching a class on the Beethoven quartets this semester, also is looking forward to experiencing the whole set of works. \n"This will be a chance to admire the craftsmanship and experience the heartfelt feelings Beethoven put into the quartets," Green said. "We can look at how he ignores the normal rules of form and tonality that we learn in theory -- how he came to be above those kinds of things."\nIn addition to the concerts, the Orion Quartet will also be giving two master classes during each visit to IU. These will be held 12:30 p.m. Monday and Tuesday in Ford Hall, and will be open to all students and the public. \nBoth the quartet and the professors said they hope that these concerts will give students an opportunity to truly understand the inner makings of a quartet and gain something from the Orion Quartet's vast experience.