During their 14th season performing together, the Chiara Quartet is moving forward by taking a cue from the past. Harkening back to a tradition that is centuries old and still common amongst soloists, the Chiara Quartet has adapted to a new way of performing: sans printed sheet music. For almost all of the Quartet’s upcoming concerts, they’ll be performing by heart. After spending countless hours working towards playing their repertoire from memory, they now feel that the sheet music is a distraction to the performance, instead of an aid.
Of the process, the Chiara’s cellist Gregory Beaver says, “The act of performing from memory has been equally challenging for each one of us. No single member has a monopoly on either surprise memory slips or perfect recall in performance.” After memorizing a work, the Quartet is rewarded with deeply gratifying performances where each member feels fully present in the moment, truly performing with heart, by heart.
