Eastman Showcase 2008
A Good Initial Impression
The members of a new string quartet - every man JACK of them, you might say – are starting to make a splash in the contemporary music world. Violist John Pickford Richards (BM ’02, MM ’04), violinists Ari Streisfeld (BM ’05) and Christopher Otto (BM ’06) and, and cellist Kevin McFarland (BM ’04) all met at Eastman and formed a string quartet, using the first letters of their names to create its title, JACK. John lives in New York, Ari in Boston, Christopher in San Diego, and Kevin in Pennsylvania, but they frequently come together for concerts of contemporary music that have earned them admiring comments from such composers as Helmut Lachenmann and Matthias Pinscher. JACK’s 2008 schedule includes concerts in Mexico, Boston, and Minneapolis. You can hear some of JACK’s playing in works by Xenakis, John Cage, and many other composers at www.jackquartet.com.