Biography
The Lark Quartet, a New York ensemble, substantially broadened the body of American works written for string quartet across its 34-year history. Among its commissions was Aaron Jay Kernis’s Pulitzer Prize-winning String Quartet No. 2 (“Musica instrumentalis”), which the group both premiered and recorded.
Cellist Laura Sewell assembled the ensemble in 1985, engaging violinists Kay Stern and Robin Mayforth together with violist Anna Kruger. Sewell’s victory in Self magazine’s Fresh Start competition supplied the funds for the quartet’s first New York concert. Although personnel shifted repeatedly, the final roster at the time of the group’s 2019 dissolution consisted of violinists Deborah Buck and Basia Danilow, violist Kathryn Lockwood, and cellist Caroline Stinson. Its guiding principle stayed unchanged: sustained advocacy for new scores by leading American composers. In addition to Kernis, these included William Bolcom, who wrote the song cycle Billy in the Darbies for the Lark Quartet and baritone Stephen Salters; Jennifer Higdon, whose piano quintet Scenes from a Poet’s Dream they introduced; and Peter Schickele, composer of the String Quartet No. 2 “In Memoriam.”
The quartet appeared in major chamber-music settings such as Carnegie Hall, the Library of Congress in Washington, and Wigmore Hall in London. Its festival engagements ranged from Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart and Wolftrap outside Washington to the Beethoven Festival in Moscow. Between 2004 and 2008 the ensemble served as quartet-in-residence at the University of Massachusetts. It also became known for its “Lark About Town” series of free family concerts and house concerts throughout the New York area.
Recordings, issued chiefly on Arabesque and Bridge, encompassed both contemporary pieces—the 1998 album On a Lark was devoted entirely to Schickele—and landmark twentieth-century repertory, including two discs focused on Amy Beach. Shortly before disbanding, the quartet released A Farewell Celebration in 2019, containing works by John Harbison, Anna Weesner, and Andrew Waggoner.
Cellist Laura Sewell assembled the ensemble in 1985, engaging violinists Kay Stern and Robin Mayforth together with violist Anna Kruger. Sewell’s victory in Self magazine’s Fresh Start competition supplied the funds for the quartet’s first New York concert. Although personnel shifted repeatedly, the final roster at the time of the group’s 2019 dissolution consisted of violinists Deborah Buck and Basia Danilow, violist Kathryn Lockwood, and cellist Caroline Stinson. Its guiding principle stayed unchanged: sustained advocacy for new scores by leading American composers. In addition to Kernis, these included William Bolcom, who wrote the song cycle Billy in the Darbies for the Lark Quartet and baritone Stephen Salters; Jennifer Higdon, whose piano quintet Scenes from a Poet’s Dream they introduced; and Peter Schickele, composer of the String Quartet No. 2 “In Memoriam.”
The quartet appeared in major chamber-music settings such as Carnegie Hall, the Library of Congress in Washington, and Wigmore Hall in London. Its festival engagements ranged from Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart and Wolftrap outside Washington to the Beethoven Festival in Moscow. Between 2004 and 2008 the ensemble served as quartet-in-residence at the University of Massachusetts. It also became known for its “Lark About Town” series of free family concerts and house concerts throughout the New York area.
Recordings, issued chiefly on Arabesque and Bridge, encompassed both contemporary pieces—the 1998 album On a Lark was devoted entirely to Schickele—and landmark twentieth-century repertory, including two discs focused on Amy Beach. Shortly before disbanding, the quartet released A Farewell Celebration in 2019, containing works by John Harbison, Anna Weesner, and Andrew Waggoner.
Albums
Composing America
2014
Kernis: Symphony in Waves & String Quartet No. 1 "Musica celestis"
2006
Sollima: Viaggio in Italia
2000
Kernis: Symphony In Waves; String Quartet 'Musica Celestis'
1992
Singles
