Legendary Takács Quartet brings masterful evening of Mozart and Schubert to Blacksburg
The internationally acclaimed Takács Quartet has become a favorite on the world’s great stages for performances featuring drama, warmth, humor, and extraordinary precision. The ensemble makes its Blacksburg debut at the Center for the Arts on Wednesday, April 15, at 7:30 p.m. with award-winning violist Jordan Bak for an evening of masterworks by Schubert and Mozart.
Formed in Budapest in 1975, the Takács Quartet, featuring Edward Dusinberre and Harumi Rhodes on violins, Richard O’Neill on viola, and founding member András Fejér on cello, brings fresh insights to the string quartet repertoire. The program for this performance includes some of the most iconic and famous chamber works ever: two Mozart viola quintets alongside Schubert’s one-movement — and rarely heard — masterpiece, “Quartettsatz.”
Schubert’s electrifying work opens the program with music that feels almost cinematic in its intensity. Written when the composer was just 23, this unfinished piece bursts with restless energy, haunting melodies, and sudden shifts between darkness and lyric beauty, offering a glimpse of the bold new Romantic voice Schubert was becoming.
Mozart’s Viola Quintet No. 3 in C Major, K. 515 expands the sound of the traditional quartet by adding a second viola, creating a warm, richly textured musical conversation among five instruments. By turns elegant, playful, and deeply expressive, the work unfolds like a chamber opera, filled with singing melodies and dazzling interplay among the musicians. In striking contrast, Mozart’s Viola Quintet No. 4 in G Minor, K. 516 explores a darker emotional landscape rarely heard in his music. Written during a period of personal turmoil, the piece moves through shadowed tension and profound introspection before ultimately turning toward light in a brilliant, hopeful finale.
About the artists
The Takács Quartet
In recognition of its 50th anniversary, the quartet released two anniversary season albums in 2025 for Hyperion Records to glowing reviews. “Flow” by Ngwenyama, composed for the ensemble, was followed by an album of piano quintets by Dvořák and Price with Marc André Hamelin.
For its albums on the Decca/London label, the quartet has won three Gramophone Awards, a Grammy Award, three Japanese Record Academy Awards, Disc of the Year at the inaugural BBC Music Magazine Awards, and Ensemble Album of the Year at the Classical Brits.
The quartet enjoys a busy international touring schedule. As associate artists at London’s Wigmore Hall, the group will present four concerts featuring works by Haydn, Assad, Debussy, Beethoven, and two Mozart viola quintets with Timothy Ridout that will also be recorded for Hyperion.
The members of the Takács Quartet have been artists-in-residence at the University of Colorado, Boulder since 1986. During the summer months the quartet joins the faculty at the Music Academy of the West, running an intensive quartet seminar. This season the ensemble begins a new relationship as visiting artists at the University of Maryland.
Violist Jordan Bak
Bak has achieved international acclaim as a trailblazing artist, praised for his radiant stage presence, dynamic interpretations, and fearless power. Winner of the Juilliard Concerto Competition and the recipient of the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s Alexandra Jupin Award and former Young Classical Artist Trust’s Robey Artist, Bak was also a prizewinner in the Sphinx, Lionel Tertis, and Concert Artists Guild competitions.
For the 2025-26 season, Bak has made his concerto debuts with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Houston Symphony Orchestra. He will also give the world premiere of composer Michael Frazier’s new viola concerto, “Los quetzales,” commissioned by Eastman School of Music, the Sphinx Organization, and American Composers Orchestra.
Bak’s enthusiastically received sophomore album, “Cantabile: Anthems for Viola” on Delphian Records, has garnered significant international attention, featuring works by Arnold Bax, Benjamin Britten, and Ralph Vaughan Williams, paired with contemporary compositions by Jonathan Harvey, Bright Sheng, and Augusta Read Thomas. A proud new music advocate, Bak has given numerous world premieres, including Kaija Saariaho’s “Du gick, flög” for viola and mezzo-soprano.
Only the third violist to earn the Artist Diploma from the Juilliard School, Bak holds a bachelor of music degree from New England Conservatory and a master of music degree from the Juilliard School, where he was awarded the prestigious Kovner Fellowship. His principal teachers were Dimitri Murrath, Hsin-Yun Huang, and Samuel Rhodes.
This performance is supported in part by gifts from Minnis and Louise Ridenour and Rosemary Blieszner and Stephen P. Gerus. Additional funding is provided by the Deborah L. Brown Center for the Arts Excellence Fund and Intimate Voices.
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Related events
Immediately following the performance, Bak and the quartet will participate in a post-show discussion with audience members.
While visiting Blacksburg, the Takács Quartet will lead a master class with Virginia Tech student musicians. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.
Tickets
Tickets are $25-$65 for general audience and $10 for students and youth 18 and under. Tickets can be purchased online; at the Center for the Arts box office, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; or by calling 540-231-5300 during box office hours.
Venue and parking information
The performance will be held in the center’s Anne and Ellen Fife Theatre, located within the Street and Davis Performance Hall at 190 Alumni Mall. Convenient parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street and in downtown Blacksburg. Find more parking details online.
If you are an individual with a disability and desire an accommodation, please contact Jonathan Boulter at least 10 days prior to the event at 540-231-5300 or email jboulter@vt.edu during regular business hours.
