Arianna Quartet

The Arianna String Quartet will perform a free concert at 8 p.m. March 20 in the Denkmann Memorial Building, Wallenberg Hall.

Founded in 1992, the St. Louis-based string quartet consists of John McGrosso and Julia Sakharova, violin; Joanna Mendoza, viola; and Kurt Baldwin, cello.In 2000, all four members were appointed to the faculty of the University of Missouri-St. Louis as artist teachers and quartet-in-residence, and more recently as associate professors of music.

The Arianna String Quartet has performed in Mexico, Japan, Canada and France, and throughout the United States, including several visits to Augustana. The multiple visits to the college have been due in part to the friendship between cellist Kurt Baldwin, originally of Iowa City, and Dr. Janina Ehrlich, Augustana professor of music.

"They are a fabulous quartet and in great demand," said Dr. Ehrlich, who taught Baldwin for several years. "They are such good teachers and performers. Watching and listening to them play is an experience you just don't get to have very often."

In addition to teaching and performing at Augustana, Dr. Ehrlich is a member of the board of directors for the SBC Music and Arts Academy in Rock Island, Ill. Dr. Ehrlich's professional orchestral experience has included the Orquestra Sinfonica Brasiliera (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and 25 years in the Quad City Symphony Orchestra.

Arianna String Quartet performances have been praised for "tonal warmth, fastidious balance...expressive vitality" (Chicago Tribune) and "emotional commitment and fluent virtuosity," (Pretoria News, South Africa). Their live performances have been heard on National Public Radio's "Performance Today," and "Live from Music Mountain", which broadcasts to 125 stations in the U.S. and to 35 countries.