DOVER QUARTET with Josef Špaček, Violin and Xiaohui Yang, Piano

Named one of the greatest string quartets of the last 100 years by BBC Music Magazine, the Grammy-nominated Dover Quartet has followed a "practically meteoric" trajectory to become one of the most in-demand chamber ensembles in the world.  In addition to its faculty role as the Penelope P. Watkins Ensemble in Residence at the Curtis Institute of Music, the Dover Quartet holds residencies with the Kennedy Center, Bienan School of Music at Northwestern University, Artosphere, and the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival. The group's awards include a stunning sweep of all prizes at the 2013 Banff International String Quartet Competition, grand and first prizes at the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition, and prizes at the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition.  Its prestigious honors include the Avery Fisher Career Grant, Chamber Music America's Cleveland Quartet Award, and Lincoln Center's Hunt Family Award.

Praised for his remarkable range of colours, his confident and concentrated stage presence, his virtuosity and technical poise as well as the beauty of his tone, Josef Špaček has gradually emerged as one of the leading violinists of his generation.  His performances of a wide range of repertoire demonstrate his "astonishing articulation and athleticism" (The Scotsman) and "a richness and piquancy of timbre." (The Telegraph) Špaček has appeared with orchestras including the Orchestre de Paris, the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, the Bamberger Symphoniker, the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields orchestra, the Konzerthausorchester Berlin, the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, the Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich, and the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra.  Josef studied with Itzhak Perlman at The Juilliard School in New York, Ida Kavafian and Jaime Laredo at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, and Jaroslav Foltyn at the Prague Conservatory.  He was laureate of the International Queen Elizabeth Competition in Brussels and won top prizes at the Michael Hill International Violin Competition in New Zealand, the Carl Nielson International Violin Competition in Denmark, and the Young Concert Artist International Auditions in New York.