Lyceum Chamber Series: The U.S. Army String Quartet

• Matthew Evans, violin
• Lisa Park, violin
• Rebecca Barnett, viola
• Benjamin Wensel, cello

Schubert's "Death and the Maiden" string quartet is named after the second movement in which the composer borrows his own thematic material from a prior song. Schubert was battling syphilis and bad finances after entering into a disastrous deal with publisher Diabelli, who did not pay the composer. Despite knowing his end was near, he continued to write tuneful, gemutlich music for which he was known: a tarantella, a traditional dance to ward off madness and death. Wild dancing gives way to a triumphant end. George Meyer, alumnus of Harvard and Juilliard, is an accomplished fiddler and arranged Working on a Building in 2022 as an homage to his role model, fiddler Tim O'Brien, whose performance of the original Working on a Building inspired George arrangement. Danish String Quartet, a classical string quartet, arranged an album of traditional folk songs from small Nordic villages in Denmark, the Faroe Islands, Norway and Sweden. The songs range from melancholic to happy dances to a slow polska, and ending with a little bit of rock n'roll.

About Live at the Lyceum Chamber Series

https://www.wmpamusic.org/lyceum-chamber-series-schedule.html

About The U.S. Army String Quartet

https://usarmyband.com/ensembles/the-u-s-army-string-quartet

About Matthew Evans, violin

MSG Matthew Evans joined The U.S. Army Strings in 2007. A native of State College, Pennsylvania, he studied with James Lyon at Penn State University, and Christophe and Judy Bosua at the Ecole Suzuki School in Lyon, France. Evans earned his bachelor's degree in violin performance with honors from the University of Louisville. While at U of L, he studied with Peter McHugh, Paul York, and was concertmaster of the symphony orchestra under the direction of Kim Lloyd.

Evans has won numerous concerto competitions and performed solos with the Williamsport Symphony, Nittany Valley Symphony, Louisville Symphony, Sewanee Summer Music Festival Orchestra, and the United States Army Orchestra. Highlights of Evans's Army career have been performing with the joint forces orchestra for President Obama's inaugural concert at the Lincoln Memorial, Performing a concerto with acclaimed fiddler and jazz violinist Mark O'Conner, and performing the Theme from Schindler's List with The Army Band for the Days of Remembrance Ceremony at the U.S. Capitol. Evans currently serves as Stroll Leader for The U.S. Army Strolling Strings.

About Lisa Park, violin

SFC Lisa Park received a B.A. in Psychology and was awarded the Hastings Prize in Musical Performance at Harvard University. Park performed with the Ying Quartet at Harvard and studied at the Eastman School of Music for one year. She received an M.M. from Rice University and a Performer’s Diploma from Southern Methodist University while serving as undergraduate violin instructor. Her teachers include Roman Totenberg, Emanuel Borok and Cho-Liang Lin.

She has served as concertmaster of ensembles including the Castleton Festival Orchestra under the late Lorin Maazel, National Orchestral Institute under David Robertson, Arlington Philharmonic, New Orchestra of Washington, and Rockville Bach Academy. Park has performed as featured soloist with the New England String Ensemble on the Boston Esplanade, The U.S. Army Orchestra, Harvard Bach Society Orchestra, Wellesley Symphony, and Boston Civic Symphony. Park received fellowships from the Aspen Music School, Kneisel Hall Chamber Festival, Moritzburg Academy, and was artist-in-residence at Atlantic Music Festival. As a proponent of new music, she has performed with contemporary ensembles including the 21st Century Consort at the Hirshhorn Museum.

Park was the first placing violinist in the USA International Music Competition and New England String Ensemble Competition and was recipient of the Volkswagen Prize for Best Chamber Music Performance (Moritzburg Academy). In 2016, SFC Park was one of three junior U.S. Army Soldiers from the MDW recognized for excellent service by President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter. Prior to joining the U.S. Army Strings in 2015, Park served as Professor of Violin and Music Theory at Richland College in Dallas, TX. An active educator, Park has served as an adjudicator at local concerto competitions. She is a member of the Pi Kappa Lambda music honor society.

About Rebecca Barnett, viola

SSG Rebecca Barnett, from Baltimore, Maryland, joined the U.S. Army Strings in 2022. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland, College Park in 2018, and her master's Degree from Rice University in 2020. Her primary teachers were Katherine Murdock and Ivo Jan van der Werff.

Barnett has performed as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral musician at concerts all over the United States. She has appeared at music festivals such as the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Innsbrook Summer Academy and Festival, National Symphony Summer Music Institute, Mendocino Music Festival, Colorado College Music Festival, and the Texas Music Festival. In addition, she has made multiple appearances at the Kennedy Center for various chamber music performances.

As a soloist, she performed Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante with the Montgomery College Orchestra. Further, she was a finalist in the University of Maryland Concerto Competition in both 2016 and 2017, for her performances of the Bowen and Rozsa viola concertos. She was also a prize winner in the 2015-16 EnKor International Music Competition for Strings.

Barnett maintains an active private teaching studio from her home studio in Maryland. In her spare time, Barnett loves cooking, gardening, and walking.

About Benjamin Wensel, cello

A native of Western New York, MSG Benjamin Wensel earned degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music and Eastman School of Music, where he served as assistant to renowned pedagogue Alan Harris. Equally important to his musical education were performances in seminars and master classes for members of the Cleveland, Guaneri, Juilliard, Miami and Ying quartets; chamber music studies with Peter Salaff and members of the Audubon and Cavani Quartets; and solo master classes with David Soyer, Clemens Michael Hagen, Steven Isserlis and Michel Strauss. Wensel has performed with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic, Syracuse Symphony, and has been a member of The U.S. Army Strings, Orchestra and String Quartet since 2003. Additionally, Wensel appears with many of the fine local ensembles in the National Capital Region. Dedicated to the creation and promotion of new music, Wensel performed the world premieres of more than 20 works written by established and emerging American composers as a founding member of the Tarab Cello Ensemble and participated in the ensemble’s residencies at Princeton University, Stetson University, and the University of South Florida. He currently coaches for the 9th Street Chamber Music, Quartet Intensive program as well as maintaining a private studio in Fairfax, Virginia. Grateful to be an active member of the innovative arts community of the Capital region, Wensel performs regularly as the cellist of the Mellifera Quartet. He can be heard on recordings produced by Bridge, Delos, Harmonia Mundi, RM Records, and Summit.