QUARTETTO GELATO

Discography

Shalom Bard
clarinet

Peter De Sotto
tenor, violin, mandolin

Alexander Sevastian
accordion, piano

Elinor Frey
cello

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Quartetto Gelato Takes Listeners on Journey Along Orient Express
New Album Offers Exotic Repertoire from London to Istanbul

"Quartetto Gelato's performances have a warm, endearing vitality." - NY Times

NEW YORK - Critically-acclaimed classical ensemble Quartetto Gelato invites listeners on a lush musical journey across continents and cultures in a new recording from Linus Entertainment/SpinArt Records, Quartetto Gelato Travels the Orient Express (in stores nationwide June 29, 2004, distributed by Rykodisc). From Ravel's Paris to Brahms' Munich to Abramovitch's Istanbul, the album captures an exotic ride along the musical landscape popularized by the first luxury passenger train to connect Western and Eastern Europe.

"Our idea for the record was to create a musical journey through different cultures and musical landscapes," says Quartetto Gelato's Cynthia Steljes, a renowned oboist and a teacher at the Glenn Gould Professional School in Toronto. "We want to bring a sense of exoticism and luxury to the arm chair listener."

With members from three countries playing nine instruments and a repertoire that unites classical masterworks and operatic arias with tangos, gypsy fiddling and folk songs, Quartetto Gelato is one of classical music's most imaginative ensembles.

Hailed by critics for their "breathtaking virtuosity" (Chicago Tribune) and as a "musical sensation" (Toronto Star), the ensemble consists of founding members Cynthia Steljes (oboe and English horn) and Peter DeSotto (tenor, violin and mandolin), both Canadians; and new members Alexander Sevastian of Belarus (accordion and piano), a three-time first prize winner of the International Accordion Competition who recently emigrated to Canada; and American Kristina Reiko Cooper (cello), winner of the 1999 Walter M. Naumberg Chamber Music Competition and a 2001 recipient of a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the Julliard School.

"Our goal was to make a recording that would be fun and exotic and also an expression of who we are and what we love to do," says Cooper, a resident of the Marlboro, Aspen and Spoleto USA music festivals and a regular with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. "Through songs and instrumental works, the album spotlights each of us as soloists and also how well-matched we are as an ensemble."

The Orient Express was the first luxury passenger train to navigate from Western to Eastern Europe, ferrying its exclusive clientele from the gun smoke grey skies of Victorian London to the turquoise delights of Istanbul. Quartetto Gelato Travels the Orient Express explores the music from the countries visited in the 1883 odyssey, from the platform of Wellington Station in London to the cafes of Paris to the dance halls of Bucharest and Istanbul.

Quartetto Gelato Travels the Orient Express spotlights the extraordinary musical talent and range of the individual artists whose technique, finesse and humor have won the hearts of audiences worldwide.

The album opens with the uncharacteristically wistful song, The Slow Train by Flanders and Swann. Then it's off to France where Ravel takes listeners back to the rococo days of the 18th century in his tribute to Couperin in an impressive musical trompe l'oeil. DeSotto sings doggerel French verse, replacing Ravel's original scoring for woodwinds in an extraordinary transcription of Le Tombeau de Couperin.

Next, two French classics recall the comfort of the Gauloise-soaked cafes of pre-war Paris: Under Paris Skies and La Vie en Rose. In Munich, surrender to the abandon of Brahms and Weber in the spirited Gypsy Rondo and the finale of Weber's Konzertstück, where Sevastian's wizardry on the accordion is on display.

Kreisler would have loved this version of his virtuoso violin classic, Tambourin Chinois, played with seductive ease by Cooper on the cello. With feet still in Vienna, but his heart beating in Budapest, DeSotto serenades listeners 'mit schlag' in Lehár's drippingly sentimental My Heart is Yours Alone. Kodaly delivers us right to the Hungarian countryside in the ensemble's offering of a compendium of ethnic folk tunes. Then the Romanian Caravan steers its way through a wild romp in Bucharest, which includes a masterful violin/bird cadenza.

The recording also includes a mix of oriental themes in the enchanting Turkish Circus. Highlighting Steljes' prowess on the oboe, where she uses a host of unorthodox techniques from flutter tonguing to multi-phonics, the piece also features Dino Carambelas' inventive drumming. The final stop on this whirlwind tour is an unscheduled landing in Dublin where the quartet has included a bonus track of the Irish beauty, Danny Boy, featuring DeSotto as vocalist.

With its latest recording, Quartetto Gelato is leading a classical music trend that combines virtuoso performances with an accessible, eclectic repertoire that is connecting classical music to new audiences.

"Quartetto Gelato is all about making a connection with listeners and creating a wider audience for classical music," says DeSotto, who played violin with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra for ten years. "We try to make classical music accessible, engaging and fun."

Quartetto Gelato's 2004-2005 season includes performances throughout the United States, Canada and Italy as well as a tour of Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei and Singapore. Previous performances have taken the ensemble to London, Hong Kong, New York, Washington D.C., Boston, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Toronto.

Quartetto Gelato Travels the Orient Express was released in Canada on March 9, debuting at No. 5 on the Canadian classical music charts and remaining in the top 10. Previous releases include Neapolitan Café (QG Recordings/Silva Classics), which has been a fixture on the Billboard Classical Crossover charts since its release in April 2001. Other recordings include Aria Fresca, Rustic Chivalry and Quartetto Gelato for Marquis Classics/Allegro.

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