music – Quartair

Pi Quartet: contemporary music concert at Quartair

On Sunday, June 1st, Quartair receives Pi Quartet for their debut concert.

Based in The Hague, Pi Quartet is a half-American, half-Dutch string quartet dedicated to neo-classical, contemporary, and experimental music. Composed of Leah Plave (cello), Lidwine Dam (viola), Leslee Smucker (violin), and Hoei Lien The (violin), the ensemble formed out of a shared passion for multidisciplinary performance and curiosity for music beyond the traditional canon. The name Pi, referencing the mathematical symbol π, symbolizes unity, harmony, and infinite potential as well as the quartet’s sensitivity to space and context in performance.

Program:
Caroline Shaw – Entr’acte
Arvo Pärt – Summa
Philip Glass – Strijkkwartet nr. 5
Osvaldo Golijov – Tenebrae

Entrance:
Regular €22.17
Students € 13.78

Tickets on: www.eventbrite.com/e/tickets-quartets-quartair

Visit also: www.piquartet.nl

Seeing Sounds

Seeing Sounds is an interdisciplinary performance by Kaja Majoor featuring Diederik Smulders on the cello, Ricardo Oliveira on percussion, and Majoor on the violin.

The program includes graphic scores by Morton Feldman, Mark Applebaum, Pauline Oliveros, Anas Qadamani, along with original scores by Kaja Majoor.

Saturday, 24 August, 2024 at 16:00 – free entrance

With Seeing Sounds, Majoor investigates how graphic scores can be used to create visual representations of sounds, giving both synesthetes and non-synesthetes a chance to experience music in a multi-sensory way. Exploring the phenomenon of synesthesia through graphic scores, illustrator and violinist Kaja Majoor combines different disciplines through colours, shapes and movements. The scores are projected on a screen in order to give the audience the chance to follow both the improvised music as well as the score.

Recently graduated at the Royal Conservatoire Masters in violin (NAIP / New Audiences and Innovative Practice), Majoor has been working on the project Seeing Sounds for the past two years. As an outcome she has created 5 graphical scores to be performed in collaboration with cellist Diederik Smulders and percussionist Ricardo Oliveira, as a trio at Quartair. Before the concert, Kaja will give a lecture on graphic scores, synesthesia, and her NAIP Master journey.

Photos by Martin Majoor

Second Breath: Myra-Ida van der Veen / Rewire Festival

Quartair proudly presents Myra-Ida van der Veen, performing during the Rewire Festival 2024. Curated by our member Mike Rijnierse, who has been coaching the artist / musician since last year, the performance Second Breath will be a site specific performance developed within the acoustics of Quartair. Second Breath will be shown 3 times per day during the festival, as part of Proximity Music – a program put together by iii.

‘Second Breath’ performance by Myra-Ida van der Veen, Rewire Festival 2024. Photo by Pieter Kers

Second Breath performance times:

Friday 5 April 14:00-14:30 | 17:00-17:30 | 20:30-21:00
Saturday 6 April 14:00-14:30 | 17:00-17:30 | 20:30-21:00
Sunday 7 April 14:00-14:30 | 17:00-17:30 | 20:30-21:00

Free entrance.
Limited number of seats per show: 40 (doors will be closed after the performance starts)

Second Breath is a performance that delves into the physicality of sound as it moves through the primal essence of the voice: the breath. Through this, the artist unravels the intricate relationship between the human body and the ethereal vibrations that emanate from within. When one sings, they fill their lungs with air. The air flows out, and by shaping different parts of their body, they create certain sounds: temporal voices, temporal breath. Drawing inspiration from the fascinating anatomy of frogs, van der Veen ingeniously crafts an environment that blurs the lines between choir, performance, and choreography.

Check out video documentation produced by iii/Tanja Busking:

Myra’s website: http://idamyraida.myportfolio.com
Rewire Festival: http://www.rewirefestival.nl/
Proximity Music: http://instrumentinventors.org/agenda/proximity-music-states-of-fragility

With thanks to Rewire, Stroom Den Haag and iii

A glimpse of Riga

During Hoogtij #55, QUARTAIR hosts a special evening with Latvian artists. An event that lets people have a glimpse of what the city of Riga and its citizens are. During this evening The Hague’s public will meet their art, drink the traditional Black Balsam, listen to Rigan band The Bad Tones and watch the 16 mm short film ‘Sound we see: Riga’ featuring 25 artists of the capital of Latvia.

Participating artists: Rudolfs Stamers, Gundega Strauberga, Estere Betija Gravere, Sabine Vernere, Ieva Jakuša, Nanda Milberta, The Bad Tones and Eliza Elizabete Ramza.

The Bad Tones is a psychedelic-rock quartet from Latvia, previously known as The Pink Elephant. Mixing skills crafted through classical rock and blues standards with the song writing approach of modern, independent music, they’ve developed their own style and form.

Friday, November 30th, 2018
Doors open 19:00 Concert: The Bad Tones 20:30 and 22:30
Film: ”Sound we see: Riga’’ (on view all night long)
This event is curated by Eliza Elizabete Ramza, who worked with us at Quartair for three months in 2018.

This event was supported by: