Descripción
Program: Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major, K. 488 Interval Beethoven's String Quartet, Op. 132 Acclaimed for its vibrant energy and emotional depth, the Balourdet Quartet creates “a world where memory and transformation coexist” . Described as “an ensemble unafraid to show its personality, the Quartet was awarded the 2024 Avery Fisher Career Grant and Chamber Music America’s 2024 Cleveland Quartet Award. In 2026 the Balourdet Quartet was named the inaugural fellow of the Resonance String Quartet Fellowship. Highlights of the 2025–26 season include performances at Carnegie Hall, the Smithsonian Museum, Boston’s Celebrity Series, the Rockport Music Festival, and La Jolla Music Society. The Balourdet collaborates with leading artists of our time including Yo-Yo Ma, Marc-André Hamelin, James Ehnes, Misha Dichter, Simone Dinnerstein, Zuill Bailey, and the Dover, Pacifica, and Ying Quartets. John Orlando graduated Summa Cum Laude with a D.M.A in performance from the University of California. He has performed with the Cabrillo Festival and the Institute for the Development of Intercultural Relations for the Arts, and the Distinguished Artists Concert Series . Dr. Orlando has performed concertos with the Espressivo Chamber Orchestra, San Francisco Sinfonietta , Cadenza Chamber Orchestra, the Todi Music Masters Festival Orchestra in Todi, Italy, and Santa Cruz and Fresno County Symphonies. Dr. Orlando has held teaching positions at USC and Santa Clara universities. He is instructor emeritus at Cabrillo College and director of the Distinguished Artists Concert & Lecture Series which he founded in 1985. He was one of the first recipients of the Gail Rich Award in Santa Cruz County and was chosen Best College Teacher and Performer in Santa Cruz County by the Good Times Weekly local newspaper.