WT’s Harrington String Quartet to Open New Season, Start Search for New Member

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, [email protected]

CANYON, Texas - The Harrington String Quartet will open its 2024-2025 season as a trio.

Violist Vesselin Todorov stepped down from the quartet over the summer to accept a position in Tulsa, and HSQ has begun a search for his replacement.

In the meantime, the ensemble will offer its season-opening "The Four Bs" concert at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 8 in Mary Moody Northen Recital Hall on WT's Canyon campus.

"We will continue to bring good chamber music to our audience and not a recital of solo works, but of the possible combinations of any three instruments of a string quartet, finding a worthwhile repertoire for two violins and cello is particularly difficult," said Rossitza Goza, violin. "The program we created covers a lot of territory and also ended up having four composers whose names begin with B. This wasn't intentional, but it works as a clever concert title."

The program will include Johann Sebastian Bach's Suite for Solo Cello, featuring Emmanuel Lopez; Luigi Boccherini's Trio in F minor; Ludwig van Beethoven's Prelude and Fugue in E minor; and Johannes Brahms' Quartet in A minor, featuring guest violist Kimberly Sparr.

Tickets are $20 or $50 for season tickets. Call 806-651-2780 or visit wtamu.edu/music.

Todorov, who joined the quartet in 2011, is now the assistant principal violist of the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra.

A search will be conducted by the remaining quartet members Goza; Emmanuel Lopez, cello; and Evgeny Zvonnikov, violin; as well as Dr. B.J. Brooks, director of the WT School of Music, and Dr. Mark Bartley, associate dean of the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities and WT's Lilith Brainard Professor of Music.

"Not only are we looking for the best musician and string player we can find but also a good teacher, an engaging personality and a reliable and trustworthy colleague," said Lopez, the quartet's cellist since 1991.

Quartet members are lecturers in WT's School of Music, as well; Lopez also is a Periman Distinguished Artist

HSQ was established by a generous gift from the late Sybil B. Harrington to benefit the Panhandle community. From its founding in 1981, the quartet has brought stellar credentials and a refined sense of ensemble and musical integrity to performances across the nation and internationally.

HSQ's collaborative recording with the Phoenix Chorale, "Northern Lights," was distinguished as iTunes's Best Classical Vocal Album of 2012. In 2005, the quartet also released a Grammy-nominated album of works by American composer Daniel McCarthy on the Albany Records label.

Fostering an appreciation of the arts is a key component of the University's long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign's new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised more than $160 million.

About West Texas A&M University

WT, a Regional Research University, is redefining excellence in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of more than 9,000 and offers 58 undergraduate degree programs, one associate degree, and 44 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor's and master's degree, a specialist degree and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest's finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men's and women's athletics programs.

Photo: Harrington String Quartet members Rossitza Goza, from left, Emmanuel Lopez and Evgeny Zvonnikov will open their season with a Nov. 8 concert as they launch a search for a new violist.

-WT-

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