"The
cellist Joshua Gordon is a find: a precise and poetic artist" Andrew Porter, The New Yorker ______________________________________________________________________________
Joshua Gordon,
cello
The cellist Joshua Gordon has won acclaim from
audiences, critics, colleagues, and composers for his dramatic music making and rich tone. An experienced soloist, chamber musician,
recording artist, orchestra player, and educator, he is the cellist of the Naumburg Award winning Lydian String Quartet and a member of the music faculty of Brandeis University in Waltham, MA. He has just been appointed Artist Member of the Worcester Chamber Music Society based in Worcester, MA.
JoshJukebox
JoshVideoBox
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while exploring other parts of the site, open page links in a new tab or window with your browser)
Essay before a web site
When I put my left hand on the fingerboard and my bow on a cello
string, my goal is to create the sound that best represents the character, context, spirit, and style of what the composer wants at that
moment, within that phrase, within the overall dramatic framework of that piece of music. Of course there are other factors as well:
unless I'm playing alone, how does my musical character interact with that of my colleagues? Should I be heard over the rest of them at
this moment or be subservient or willing to blend? Are we properly matched in our timbre or articulation, or do we not need to be? And
then the technical question: what do I need to do to be well positioned for the moment, ready to go to exactly where I have to be on the
cello? And of course the all important question, did I remember to eat that protein bar before going out on stage? (Vroom,
vroom...)
Every piece of music is its own adventure, and a
life spent in music is an adventure for sure. One cannot possibly sum up that adventure (and that of making a living while you're at it)
in just one or two paragraphs. But it is a journey worth going on, and it is an equally worthy journey for a listener who may not be as
familiar with the music my wonderful colleagues / friends and I play. I hope this site will encourage you to come along. Welcome
aboard...
with Krista Buckland Reisner, Rohan Gregory, and Amy Rawstron/violins, Peter Sulski/viola, Ian Watson, harpsichord and piano Bach Trio Sonata in C minor from "The Musical Offering" BWV 1079 Shostakovich Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57 ____________________________________________________________
with Jeffery Kazukiewicz and Piotr Buczek/violins, Mark Berger/viola Shostakovich String Quartet no. 8 Part Fratres Mendelssohn String Quartet in D major, Op. 44 no. 1 ____________________________________________________________
with Daniel Stepner/violin, Mary Ruth Ray/viola, and Ya-Fei Chuang/piano Irving Fine Fantasia for String Trio Ravel Sonata for Violin and Cello Fauré Piano Quartet in G minor ____________________________________________________________
Sunday, September 25, 2011, 7:00pm Lexington, KY | Singletary Center for the Arts, University of Kentucky
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D major, K. 499 Harbison String Quartet No. 2 (1987) Brahms String Quartet in B flat Major, Op. 67 ____________________________________________________________
Monday, September 26, 2011, 7:30pm Madisonville, KY | Glema Mahr Center For The Arts, Madisonville Community College
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D major, K. 499 Harbison String Quartet No. 2 (1987) Brahms String Quartet in B flat Major, Op. 67 ____________________________________________________________
Wednesday, October 12, 2011, noon Waltham, MA | Mandel Center for the Humanities, Brandeis University
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D major, K. 499 Harbison String Quartet No. 2 (1987) ____________________________________________________________
Thursday, October 13, 2011, 12:15pm Boston, MA | American Century Music, First Church
Friday, October 14, 2011, 8:00pm Boston, MA | Harvard Musical Association
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D major, K. 499 Harbison String Quartet No. 2 (1987) Amy Beach Piano Quintet in F sharp minor, Op. 67, with Judith Gordon, piano ____________________________________________________________
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D major, K. 499 Rakowski Fred (2011, world premiere) Harbison String Quartet No. 2 (1987) Amy Beach Piano Quintet in F sharp minor, Op. 67, with Judith Gordon, piano ____________________________________________________________
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D major, K. 499 Harbison String Quartet No. 2 (1987) Amy Beach Piano Quintet in F sharp minor, Op. 67, with Judith Gordon, piano ____________________________________________________________
Sunday, October 23, 2011, 4:00pm Boston, MA | Emmanuel Church
Emmanuel Music Beethoven Chamber Series with Gabriela Diaz/violin, Mark Berger/viola, Leslie Amper/piano Beethoven String Trio no. 3 in D
Major, Op. 9 no. 2 Beethoven Piano Trio No. 9 in Eb major, WoO 38 ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, November 5, 2011, 8:00pm Oak Ridge, TN | Oak Ridge Chamber Music Series, Pollard Auditorium, Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D major, K. 499 Harbison String Quartet No. 2 (1987) Ravel String Quartet ____________________________________________________________
Joshua Gordon and Randall Hodgkinson Duo "Birth Of The Duo" Beethoven Seven Variations on the theme "Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen" from Mozart's "Magic Flute", WoO 46 Beethoven Sonata in G minor, Op. 5 no. 2 Arthur Berger Duo (1951) Beethoven Sonata in D major, Op. 5 102 no. 2 ____________________________________________________________
Friday, November 18, 2011, 7:30pm Whitinsville, MA | Village Congregational Church Saturday, November 19, 2011, 7:30pm Worcester, MA | First Baptist Church
Worcester Chamber Music
Society with Krista Buckland Reisner and Rohan Gregory/violins, Mark Berger and Peter Sulski/violas, David Russell/cello Brahms String Sextet in B flat Major, Op. 18 ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, December 10, 2011, 8:00pm Waltham, MA | Slosberg Music Center, Brandeis University
New Music Brandeis ____________________________________________________________
Thursday, January 19, 2012, 6:00pm Boston,
MA | Class of 1959 Chapel,
Harvard Business School
with Deborah van Renterghem/soprano, Daniel Stepner and Danielle Maddon/violins, Philip Rush/viola Barber Dover Beach Schoenberg Quartet No. 2 ____________________________________________________________
Sunday, January 29, 2012, 3:00pm Worcester, MA | Traina Center for the Arts, Razzo Hall, Clark University
Worcester Chamber Music
Society with Tracy Kraus/flute, Rohan Gregory/violin, and Ian Watson/harpsichord Bach Sonata in C Major and B minor for flute and continuo Telemann Paris Quartets No. 2 and No. 3 ____________________________________________________________
Wednesday, February 1, 2012, noon Waltham, MA | Mandel Center for the Humanities, Brandeis University
Lydian String Quartet Peter Lieberson String Quartet Shostakovich String Quartet no. 10 Yu-Hui Chang String Quintet (world premiere), with Rhonda Rider, cello Brahms Sextet in G major Op. 36, with Laura Klugherz, viola and Rhonda Rider, cello ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, February 11, 2012, 8:00pm Boston, MA | Emmanuel Church
Emmanuel Music Chamber Ensemble and Orchestra Bach Orchestral Suite No. 4 in D Major, BWV 1069 Stravinsky "Dumbarton Oaks" Concerto in E-Flat Stravinsky Pulcinella (complete ballet) ____________________________________________________________
Wednesday, March 7, 2012, 8:00pm Cambridge, MA | Killian Hall, MIT
From The Lower East Side To Carnegie Hall with Michael Norsworthy/clarinet, Jennifer Elowitch and Gabriela Diaz/violins, Mary Ruth Ray/viola, Donald Berman/piano Bloch Piano Quintet no. 1 Yehudi Wyner Tanz und Meisel Paul Schoenfield Cafe Music ____________________________________________________________
Smith College Chamber Music Society, with Joel Pitchon and Sharan Leventhal/violins, Mary Ruth Ray/viola Debussy String Quartet ____________________________________________________________
Sunday, April 1, 2012, 2:30pm Peterborough, NH | RiverMead
Lydian String Quartet, with Rhonda Rider,
cello Martin Pavane Couleur du Temps Schubert String Quintet in C Major, Op. 163, D.
956 ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, April 14, 2012, 7:30pm Worcester, MA | First Unitarian Church
Worcester Chamber Music
Society with Krista Buckland Reisner and Rohan Gregory/violins, Peter Sulski/viola Barber String Quartet ____________________________________________________________
"Joshua Gordon: MidCentury Modern" John Cage Solo For Cello (from the Concert For Piano and Orchestra, 1957-58) Gunther Schuller Fantasy, Op. 19 (1951) Morton Feldman Projection 1 (1950) Mario Davidovsky Synchronisms No. 3 for cello and electronics (1964) Morton Feldman Intersection 4 (1953) Vincent Persichetti Sonata For Solo Cello, Op. 54 (1952) ____________________________________________________________
Lydian String Quartet Works composed in honor of Brandeis University President Fred Lawrence
David Rakowski Fred (2011) Yu-Hui Chang When the Wind Comes, the Grass Bends (2011), with Rhonda Rider, cello Eric Chasalow I'm Just Sayin' (2012) for string quartet and electronics, with Jeffrey Means, conductor
____________________________________________________________
Saturday, May 12, 2012, 2:30pm Westwood, MA | Fox Hill Village
Lydian String Quartet Mozart String Quartet in D minor, K. 421 Ravel String Quartet Chihara/Ellington Satin Doll ____________________________________________________________
With Sharan Leventhal/violin and viola, Anne Bobo/flute, Gary Gorczyca/clarinets, Randall Hodgkinson/piano, Mary Mackenzie, soprano Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (1912) ____________________________________________________________
With Eric Thomas/clarinet, Salley Koo and Sarah Kim/violins, Lila Brown/viola Hindemith Clarinet Quintet ____________________________________________________________
Mario Davidovsky/Conference Director James Baker/Music Director Resident artist and faculty member
With Miranda Cuckson and Jennifer Elowitch/violins, Louise Schulman/viola, Christopher Oldfather/piano Schumann Piano Quintet (July 25)
With Sarah Crocker/violin and Molly Morkoski/piano Melinda Wagner Piano Trio No. 2 - Romanze with Faux Variations, for piano trio (July 26)
With Miranda Cuckson and Owen Dalby/violins, Louise Schulman and Liuh-Wen Ting/violas, Chris Gross/cello, and James Baker/conductor Eric Chasalow String Sextet (August 2) ____________________________________________________________
August 22-29, 2012 Boothbay, ME
| Scandalous Music Festival Guest artist of the DaPonte String Quartet
With Lydia Forbes and Ferdinand Liva/violins, Kirsten Monke and Lila Brown/violas, Myles Jordan/cello
Schoenberg Transfigured Night (August 22) Brahms Sextet No. 2 in G major, Op. 36 (August 29)
with Varty Manouelian and Cenovia
Cummins/violins, Kate Vincent/viola, Rupert Thompson, cello Glazunov: String Quintet in A major, op.
39 ____________________________________________________________
Lydian String Quartet Dvorak: selections from Cypresses, B. 152 Ives: String Quartet No.
1 Brahms: Piano Quintet in F minor, with Sally Pinkas, piano ____________________________________________________________
Sunday, September 19, 2010, 2:00pm Brunswick, ME | Studzinski Recital Hall, Bowdoin College
Lydian String Quartet, with Rhonda Rider, cello Boccherini: String
Quintet in E Major, Op. 13, No. 5 Martin: Pavane Couleur du Temps Schubert: String Quintet in C Major, Op. 163, D. 956 ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, September 25, 2010, 7:30pm Worcester, MA | First Baptist Church Sunday, September 26, 2010, 3:00pm Leominster, MA | First Church Unitarian Universalist Church
Worcester Chamber Music
Society A. Tcherepnin: Serenade for Flute, Violin, and
Cello Tchaikovsky: Souvenir di Florence ____________________________________________________________
Joshua Gordon and Randall Hodgkinson "Passionately Modern: Music For Cello and Piano After World War II" Benjamin Britten: Sonata in C, Op. 60 (1961) Gunther Schuller: Duo Concertante Prokofiev: Sonata in C major, op. 109 ____________________________________________________________
Thursday, October 21, 2010, 4:00pm Hamilton, NY | Colgate University
Lydian String
Quartet Chamber Music master class ____________________________________________________________
Friday, October 22, 2010, 8:00pm Hamilton,
NY | Colgate University
Lydian String Quartet Ives: String Quartet No. 1 Alejandro Cardona: Quartet No. 5, Historias
MÃnimas Harbison / Young: Thanks Victor Dvorak: String Quintet in E flat Major, Op. 97, with Laura Klugherz, viola ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, October 30, 2010, 8:00pm Waltham, MA | Slosberg Music Center, Brandeis University
New Music Brandeis ____________________________________________________________
Thursday, November 11, 2010, 7:30 pm Canton, MA | Orchard Cove
Lydian String Quartet Haydn Quartet in E flat major ("The Joke"), Op. 33, No. 2 Fauré:
String Quartet, Op. 121 Beethoven: Quartet in F major, Op. 135 ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, November 13, 2010, 2:30 pm Westwood, MA | Fox Hill Village
Lydian String
Quartet Haydn Quartet in E flat major ("The Joke"), Op. 33, No. 2 Harbison / Young: Thanks Victor Beethoven:
Quartet in F major, Op. 135 ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, December 4, 2010, 3:00pm Wakefield MA | First Parish Congregational Church Sunday, December 5,
2010, 3:00 pm Boston, MA | Jordan Hall, New England Conservatory
New England String
Ensemble Leos Janacek:Idyla for Strings Johann Sebastian Bach: Concerto in D
major, BWV 1054, with Robert Spano, piano Derek Bermel: Soul Garden, with Nadia Sirota, viola Ludwig van
Beethoven: String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 95 (String Orchestra Version) ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, January 8, 2011, 7:30pm Worcester, MA | First Baptist Church January 9, 2011, 3:00pm Whitinsville, MA | Village Congregational Church
Worcester Chamber Music
Society Mark Berger: String Trio No. 2 after T.S.
Eliot Schubert: Notturno for Piano Trio Mozart: String Quintet No. 4 in G minor, K. 516 ____________________________________________________________
Sunday, February 13, 2011, 3:00pm Waltham, MA | Slosberg Music Center, Brandeis University
Martin Boykan 80th Birthday Celebration Concert ____________________________________________________________
Sunday, February 27, 2011, 4:00pm Boston, MA | Emmanuel Church
Emmanuel Music Beethoven Chamber Series Beethoven: Piano Trio no. 4 in B flat
Major, Op. 11 Beethoven: Septet in E flat Major, Op. 20 ____________________________________________________________
Lydian String Quartet, with Rhonda Rider,
cello Martin: Pavane Couleur du Temps Boccherini: String
Quintet in E Major, Op. 13, No. 5 Schubert: String Quintet in C Major, Op. 163, D.
956 ____________________________________________________________
Wednesday, March 23, 2011, 12 noon Waltham, MA | Mandel Center, Brandeis University
Lydian String Quartet, with
Rhonda Rider, cello Schubert: String Quintet in C Major, Op. 163, D. 956 ____________________________________________________________
Lydian Quartet 30th anniversary gala concert with
Rhonda Rider, cello
Haydn: Quartet in E flat major ("The Joke"), Op. 33, No. 2 Irving Fine: String Quartet (1953) Martin:
Pavane Couleur du Temps Schubert: String Quintet in C Major, Op. 163, D. 956
Tuesday, March 29, 2011, 8:00 pm Easton, MA
| Stone Hill College
Lydian String Quartet Haydn Quartet in E flat major ("The Joke"), Op. 33, No. 2 Fauré:
String Quartet, Op. 121 Beethoven: Quartet in F major, Op. 135 ____________________________________________________________
Lydian String Quartet Haydn Quartet in E flat major ("The Joke"), Op. 33, No. 2 Fauré: String Quartet, Op. 121 Beethoven: Quartet in F major, Op. 135 ____________________________________________________________
Monday, April 11, 2011, 8:00am Worcester,
MA | Burncoat High School / Worcester Arts Magnet School
Worcester Chamber Music
Society outreach concert Mozart: Flute Quartet in D
major ____________________________________________________________
Apple Hill String
Quartet Haydn: String Quartet in B flat major, Op. 76,
no. 4 Mozart: String Quintet No. 4 in G minor, K. 516, with Moby Pearson, viola ____________________________________________________________
Wednesday, April 27, 2011, 12 noon Waltham,
MA | Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University
Lydian String Quartet Mohammed Fairouz:
Lamentation and Satire Debussy: String Quartet ____________________________________________________________
Lydian String Quartet Leonard Bernstein: Agathon Vincent Persichetti: Piano Quintet
(1952), with Geoffrey Burleson, piano Mohammed Fairouz: Lamentation and Satire Debussy: String Quartet ____________________________________________________________
Saturday, May 7, 2011, 8:00pm Waltham, MA |
Slosberg Music Center, Brandeis University
New Music
Brandeis ____________________________________________________________
