Beethoven Forever
featuring
Ulysses Quartet
Christina Bouey, violin
Rhiannon Banerdt, violin
Peter Dudek, viola
Grace Ho, cello
Poquatuck Hall
1160 Village Lane Orient, NY, 11957
Friday, August 29th, 2025, 5:00pm
featuring
Ulysses Quartet
Christina Bouey, violin
Rhiannon Banerdt, violin
Peter Dudek, viola
Grace Ho, cello
Poquatuck Hall
1160 Village Lane Orient, NY, 11957
Friday, August 29th, 2025, 5:00pm
Music Program
Public Funds come from the Statewide Community Regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by Huntington Arts Council. Public Funds come from the Suffolk County Omnibus Grant, sponsored by Legislator Al Krupski and with the support of the Suffolk County Legislature.
Public Funds come from the Statewide Community Regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by Huntington Arts Council. Public Funds come from the Suffolk County Omnibus Grant, sponsored by Legislator Al Krupski and with the support of the Suffolk County Legislature.
This concert is presented by
Rites of Spring Music Festival
in collaboration with
Poquatuck Hall
Rites of Spring Music Festival
in collaboration with
Poquatuck Hall
Ulysses Quartet
Christina Bouey, violin
Rhiannon Banerdt, violin
Peter Dudek, viola
Grace Ho, cello
The Ulysses Quartet has been praised for their “textural versatility,” “grave beauty” and “the kind of chemistry many quartets long for, but rarely achieve” (The Strad), as well as their “avid enthusiasm ... [with] chops to back up their passion” (San Diego Story), “delivered with a blend of exuberance and polished artistry” (The Buffalo News).
Founded in the summer of 2015, the group won the grand prize and gold medal in the senior string division of the 2016 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and first prize in the 2018 Schoenfeld International String Competition. In 2017, the quartet finished first in the American Prize and won second prize at the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition. They were winners of the Vietnam International Music Competition in 2019. Ulysses garnered a career development grant in the 2016 Banff International String Quartet Competition.
Consisting of violinists Christina Bouey and Rhiannon Banerdt, violist Colin Brookes and cellist Grace Ho, the quartet’s members hail from Canada, the United States and Taiwan. They have performed in such prestigious halls as Carnegie Hall, the Harbin Grand Theatre, Jordan Hall and the Taiwan National Recital Hall. Recent performance highlights include their debut at Carnegie Hall along with appearances at the Chautauqua Institution (New York), Sociedad Filarmónica de Bilbao (Spain), Ciclo de Cámara y Solistas in Salamanca, the Picasso Museum in Málaga, Teatro Mayor Julio Santo Domingo in Bogotá, Highlands Cashiers Festival (North Carolina), Music Mountain (Connecticut) with pianist Tanya Bannister, Chelsea Music Festival and PS21 (NY), National Gallery of Art (DC), Jasper Arts Center (Indiana), and San Juan Chamber Music Festival (Colorado). The 22-23 season also features their Mexico City debut at UNAM, along with performances for Sociedad Filarmónica in Lima, Gretna Music, Yale School of Music with guitarist Ben Verdery, Kansas City Friends of Chamber Music, Fundación Juan March (Madrid), Sociedad Filarmónica in Valencia, Basel Kammermusik, and Chamber Music Society of Utica (NY). Other notable engagements have included the Buffalo Chamber Music Society, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Premiere Performances Hong Kong, National Arts Centre (Ottawa), and Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall (Istanbul)
In spring 2023, Ulysses visited Louisiana State University for a residency. At Juilliard from 2019 to 2022, they were the Lisa Arnhold Fellows, serving as the School’s Graduate Resident String Quartet for 3 years. From 2016 to 2019, Ulysses was in residence at the Louis Moreau Institute in New Orleans, working with composer Morris Rosenzweig.
Ulysses recently completed work on their debut album, to be released later this year, and four more albums are forthcoming in the near future, including collaborations with flutist Ransom Wilson and guitarist Ben Verdery, as well as albums of quartet works. As a special project, the group will record the quartets of composer Joseph Summer at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Massachusetts, over the next several years.
The group’s name pays homage to Homer’s hero Odysseus and his 10-year voyage home. Additionally, the quartet’s members live in close proximity to the resting place of former U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant in Upper Manhattan. The Ulysses String Quartet believes intensely in the power of music to inspire, enlighten and bring people together. This is the guiding principle of the Ulysses Quartet Foundation, dedicated to the performance and promotion of classical music of the past and present day to benefit the broadest possible audience of music lovers and potential music lovers by expanding their understanding and appreciation of the musical arts. Ulysses aims to use this platform to raise the voices of underrepresented BIPOC and female composers. The quartet also offers interactive programs and workshops for all ages that serve to demystify the traditional repertoire while introducing audiences to diverse programming. Their programs enable participants to learn about the inner workings of a string quartet and to explore the connections between classical music and our world today.
The members of Ulysses hold degrees from the Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, New England Conservatory and Yale University. The musicians perform on instruments and bows graciously on loan from the Maestro Foundation and private donors. Ulysses is grateful for the support of Shar Music and Connolly Music as YSOA ambassadors.
Keep up with Ulysses Quartet on their website Ulyssesquartet.com, as well as their social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube.
Christina Bouey, violin
Rhiannon Banerdt, violin
Peter Dudek, viola
Grace Ho, cello
The Ulysses Quartet has been praised for their “textural versatility,” “grave beauty” and “the kind of chemistry many quartets long for, but rarely achieve” (The Strad), as well as their “avid enthusiasm ... [with] chops to back up their passion” (San Diego Story), “delivered with a blend of exuberance and polished artistry” (The Buffalo News).
Founded in the summer of 2015, the group won the grand prize and gold medal in the senior string division of the 2016 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and first prize in the 2018 Schoenfeld International String Competition. In 2017, the quartet finished first in the American Prize and won second prize at the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition. They were winners of the Vietnam International Music Competition in 2019. Ulysses garnered a career development grant in the 2016 Banff International String Quartet Competition.
Consisting of violinists Christina Bouey and Rhiannon Banerdt, violist Colin Brookes and cellist Grace Ho, the quartet’s members hail from Canada, the United States and Taiwan. They have performed in such prestigious halls as Carnegie Hall, the Harbin Grand Theatre, Jordan Hall and the Taiwan National Recital Hall. Recent performance highlights include their debut at Carnegie Hall along with appearances at the Chautauqua Institution (New York), Sociedad Filarmónica de Bilbao (Spain), Ciclo de Cámara y Solistas in Salamanca, the Picasso Museum in Málaga, Teatro Mayor Julio Santo Domingo in Bogotá, Highlands Cashiers Festival (North Carolina), Music Mountain (Connecticut) with pianist Tanya Bannister, Chelsea Music Festival and PS21 (NY), National Gallery of Art (DC), Jasper Arts Center (Indiana), and San Juan Chamber Music Festival (Colorado). The 22-23 season also features their Mexico City debut at UNAM, along with performances for Sociedad Filarmónica in Lima, Gretna Music, Yale School of Music with guitarist Ben Verdery, Kansas City Friends of Chamber Music, Fundación Juan March (Madrid), Sociedad Filarmónica in Valencia, Basel Kammermusik, and Chamber Music Society of Utica (NY). Other notable engagements have included the Buffalo Chamber Music Society, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Premiere Performances Hong Kong, National Arts Centre (Ottawa), and Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall (Istanbul)
In spring 2023, Ulysses visited Louisiana State University for a residency. At Juilliard from 2019 to 2022, they were the Lisa Arnhold Fellows, serving as the School’s Graduate Resident String Quartet for 3 years. From 2016 to 2019, Ulysses was in residence at the Louis Moreau Institute in New Orleans, working with composer Morris Rosenzweig.
Ulysses recently completed work on their debut album, to be released later this year, and four more albums are forthcoming in the near future, including collaborations with flutist Ransom Wilson and guitarist Ben Verdery, as well as albums of quartet works. As a special project, the group will record the quartets of composer Joseph Summer at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Massachusetts, over the next several years.
The group’s name pays homage to Homer’s hero Odysseus and his 10-year voyage home. Additionally, the quartet’s members live in close proximity to the resting place of former U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant in Upper Manhattan. The Ulysses String Quartet believes intensely in the power of music to inspire, enlighten and bring people together. This is the guiding principle of the Ulysses Quartet Foundation, dedicated to the performance and promotion of classical music of the past and present day to benefit the broadest possible audience of music lovers and potential music lovers by expanding their understanding and appreciation of the musical arts. Ulysses aims to use this platform to raise the voices of underrepresented BIPOC and female composers. The quartet also offers interactive programs and workshops for all ages that serve to demystify the traditional repertoire while introducing audiences to diverse programming. Their programs enable participants to learn about the inner workings of a string quartet and to explore the connections between classical music and our world today.
The members of Ulysses hold degrees from the Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, New England Conservatory and Yale University. The musicians perform on instruments and bows graciously on loan from the Maestro Foundation and private donors. Ulysses is grateful for the support of Shar Music and Connolly Music as YSOA ambassadors.
Keep up with Ulysses Quartet on their website Ulyssesquartet.com, as well as their social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube.
