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W inners of the First Prize

and the Amadeus Prize

at the London Interna-

tional String Quartet Competition in

2006, the Formosa Quartet is “one of

the very best quartets of their genera-

tion” (David Soyer, cellist of the

Guarneri Quartet). Its debut recording

on the EMI label was hailed as “spell-

binding” (Strad Magazine) and “remark-

ably fine” (Gramophone), and the

quartet has given critically acclaimed

performances at the Ravinia Festival, the Library of Congress, the Chicago Cultural Center, and Wigmore Hall in London. Formed in 2002

when the four founding members came together for a concert tour of Taiwan, the Formosa Quartet is deeply committed to championing

Taiwanese music and promoting the arts in the land of its heritage.

In its relatively brief existence, the Formosa Quartet’s active commissioning has contributed significantly to the 21st century’s string

quartet literature. They premiered Taiwanese-American composer Shih-Hui Chen’s Returning Souls: Four Pieces on Three Formosan Amis

Legends in 2014, and the Quartet’s recording of its first commission from Ms. Chen, Fantasia on the Theme of Plum Blossom, was released

on the New World Records label in 2013. Other pieces recently written for the Quartet include three pieces by Dana Wilson — Hungar-

ian Folk Songs, The night of h’s, and Apart — Wei-Chieh Lin’s Pasibutbut, and Thomas Oboe Lee’s Piano Quintet and Jasmine Variations.

The members of the Formosa Quartet – Jasmine Lin, Wayne Lee, Che-Yen Chen, and Ru-Pei Yeh – have degrees from the Juilliard

School, Curtis Institute of Music, and New England Conservatory, and have been top prizewinners in prestigious competitions such as

the Paganini, Primrose, Naumburg, and Tertis competitions. Each summer, they serve as faculty quartet-in-residence at the National

Youth Orchestra of Canada, as well as at their very own Formosa Chamber Music Festival in Hualien, Taiwan.

short bio

press“They deliver almost technically flawless performances, taking

particular care to ensure that textures are as crystal-clear as possible

throughout each work. This approach is particularly effective in the

Mozart K. 387, which is given a marvellously elegant performance full

of youthful freshness and exuberance in the outer movements with a

naturally warm lyricism in the Andante Cantabile. It also illuminates

the rhythmic complexities of the Scherzo of Debussy’s Quartet

presented here with spellbinding virtuosity.”–BBC Music Magazine

“The Formosa Quartet plays with exquisite definition… an appetite-

teasing Mozart Quartet in G, K. 387 (with a scintillating, sure-bowed

finale), and the quartet version of Wolf’s one-off Italian Serenade in a

glistening, vivacious, witty, encore-like performance…The disc is

marked by variety, technical brilliance and much charm.”–Classic FM

“Their playing of Schubert’s Quartettsatz is instinct with drama…

while Mozart’s K. 387 is remarkably fine both in meticulous

response to the letter and in a desire to look beyond the notes.

The Formosa Quartet certainly deserve to succeed.”–Gramophone

“Bold and intense, like shots of pure espresso…Although tradition-

al in terms of repertoire, the performances on this disc go beyond

the beautiful and into the territory of unexpectedly thrilling.”

–MUSO Magazine

“They also convey with seasoned skill the drama, poetry and

lyricism of Schubert’s Quartettsatz and inject Wolf’s Italian Ser-

enade not only with breathtaking vitality and athleticism but also

with a true joie de vivre.”–Strad Magazine

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FROM HUNGARY TO TAIWAN

As an ensemble with Taiwanese heritage, it is the Formosa Quar-

tet’s ongoing mission to bridge our Western culture with the

culture of Taiwan, where Western art music was not a part of its

traditions until recently. Inspired by Kodály and Bartók, who went

into the Eastern European countryside over 100 years ago to study

folk music, we have commissioned pieces influenced by both

Hungarian and Taiwanese indigenous music; in doing so, we

explore the connections between East and West, as well as

between the lowbrow and highbrow. Dana Wilson’s Hungarian Folk

Songs is a direct adaptation of Hungarian music in its original

forms; Bartók’s Fourth Quartet is simultaneously one of his most

primal and most astonishingly refined pieces. Shih-Hui Chen’s

Fantasia on the Theme of Plum Blossom is influenced by Nanguan, a

musical style originating in China’s Fujian province and now

flourishing in Taiwan. Pasibutbut is a millet-harvest prayer song of

the the Bunun, a tribe of Taiwanese aborigines. They are best

known for their sophisticated polyphonic vocal music, and Wei-

Chieh Lin’s adaptation beautifully captures the spirit of their most

sacred ritual.

Works to be performed on the “From Hungary to Taiwan” program

include:

Shih-Hui Chen, Fantasia on the Theme of Plum Blossom*

Dana Wilson, Hungarian Folk Songs*

Wei-Chieh Lin, Pasibutbut*

Bartók, String Quartet No. 4

*COMMISSIONED BY FORMOSA QUARTET

HEIGHTS AND DEPTHS

Formosa Quartet offers this program of emotional extremes,

as music is unrivaled in its ability to capture the many facets of

human experience, from lofty beauty to dark despair. Two great

composers did so in remarkable, albeit very different, ways:

Mozart, known for his ebullience, guileless charm, and spunky

merrymaking, juxtaposes these sunny aspects with sudden turns

of melancholy and anguish, achieving interplays of light and

shadow profoundly reflective of life. In Beethoven, we hear all

that is noble in the human spirit, reaffirming our faith in mankind

— and then, equally powerfully, acute sadness and the com-

plete absence of hope. This program traverses such scope with

two resplendent works by Mozart and Beethoven, and with a

piece by Shih-Hui Chen based on aboriginal Taiwanese folklore

which takes us from the depths of violent barbarism to the

heights of radiant divinity.

Works to be performed on the “Heights and Depths” pro-

gram include:

Mozart, String Quartet No. 17 in B-flat major, K. 458 “Hunt”

Shih-Hui Chen, Returning Souls*

Beethoven, String Quartet No. 7 in F major, Op. 59, No. 1

*COMMISSIONED BY FORMOSA QUARTET

ITALIAN SERENADE

This program from Formosa Quartet explores two different

themes simultaneously: one-off chamber works by composers

who worked mostly in spheres other than chamber music, and

Italia, which, despite being well-represented in opera houses, is

an uncommon presence in string quartet concerts. From two

quintessential opera composers, Verdi and Puccini, we have two

program offerings

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program offerings (cont.)strikingly operatic pieces; Austrian lieder composer Hugo Wolf gives

us a brilliant and witty Italian Serenade. A set of Hungarian Folk Songs

rounds out the program; written for Formosa Quartet by the group’s

friend Dana Wilson, this is a raucous, ebullient, funny, and moving

piece of music that you don’t want to miss.

Works to be performed on the “Italian Serenade” program include:

Hugo Wolf, Italian Serenade

Dana Wilson, Hungarian Folk Songs*

Puccini, Crisantemi

Verdi, String Quartet in E minor

*COMMISSIONED BY FORMOSA QUARTET

ENCORE, ENCORE

These are encore pieces that are near and dear to the Formosa

Quartet, with many gems written or arranged by close friends and

members of the group. This program begins with the last complet-

ed string quartet by the father of the genre, but then traverses the

farthest corners of the quartet repertoire. A study in contrasts

on the second half – Wei-Chieh Lin’s Pasibutbut and a set of

madrigals by the Renaissance composer Luca Marenzio –

launches us through a string of miniatures composed in the

intervening 400 years that each encapsulate an emotion and

experience we can all relate to irrespective of time or place.

Works to be performed on the “Encore, Encore” program

include:

Haydn, String Quartet in F major, Op. 77, No. 2

Dana Wilson, Hungarian Folk Songs*

Wei-Chieh Lin, Pasibutbut*

Luca Marenzio, Madrigals

Duke/Wei-Chieh Lin, Autumn in New York

Burwell/Grappelli/Jasmine Lin, Sweet Lorraine

Dana Wilson, The Night of h’s (on a poem by Jasmine Lin)

More encores TBA

*COMMISSIONED BY FORMOSA QUARTET

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MASTER CLASSES AND CHAMBER MUSIC COACHINGS

The Formosa Quartet brings years of experience and immeasurable

enthusiasm to the instruction of the next generation of chamber musi-

cians. They are thrilled to work with students in a variety of contexts.

The group has teaching residencies at the Formosa Chamber Music

Festival and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, and they also

have experience coaching and giving master classes at schools such

as the University of Southern California, Cal State Fullerton, Roosevelt

University, the Juilliard School, Cornell University, and Rice University.

AUDIENCE BUILDING

Formosa Quartet is eager to bring music to underserved commu-

nities, and to perform in unusual or surprising new contexts. This

could include performances at schools, retirement homes, and

hospitals; they are also available for short, ad hoc performances

in coffee shops, salons, cafés, cafeterias, and public spaces,

perhaps as a way to spark interest in an upcoming concert

within the community.

UNIVERSITY RESIDENCIES

University residencies with the Formosa Quartet offer a total-immer-

sion experience: beyond a full-length concert, individual lessons, and

chamber music coachings and master classes, Formosa Quartet can

conduct student composition readings and outreach programs in

the community, and can integrate themselves into the existing music

department curriculum for the length of their stay. They can trace

hundreds of years of music history through the medium of the string

quartet, illustrate concepts of music theory through performance ex-

amples, or even discuss the business of music or arts administration.

Formosa is happy to work closely with artistic directors and faculty

members to custom-design a residency specific to the needs of the

students and larger community.

additional offerings

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FORMOSA QUARTET string quartet