Hailed for “superb playing, palpable chemistry, spirit, and emotional connection,” Midsummer Music’s affiliate, the Griffon String Quartet, will perform three free community concerts featuring contemporary Israeli composer Shulamit Ran, Austrian composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold, and the great Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich.

Ran’s String Quartet No. 3, “Glitter, Doom, Shards, Memory,” pays tribute to the Jewish artist Felix Nussbaum and other victims of the Holocaust. The title of the piece comes from an art exhibit of works from the Weimar Republic titled “Glitter and Doom,” which was shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Korngold is well known for his Hollywood film scores, yet he wrote some incredible music for string quartets. His String Quartet No. 2 is a whimsical, joyous work written before he found Hollywood fame.

The Griffon welcomes acclaimed pianist Rie Tanaka to join the ensemble for the Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57, which Shostakovich composed over the course of several months in 1940 and ultimately completed in Leningrad. The famed Beethoven Quartet suggested the creation of the Piano Quintet in 1938. Originally conceived as a quartet, Shostakovich modified the instrumentation because he hoped that demand for his performances as a pianist would result in increased opportunities for personal travel.

Along with Tanaka, Griffon String Quartet musicians are Roy Meyer and Alex Norris, violins, Oryann Tsaig, viola, and Jesse Nummelin, cello.

The first concert is at 7:00pm on May 23 at the Kress Pavilion in Egg Harbor. Prior to the concert – at 5:30pm – Wisconsin Public Radio will present “Music Bingo” at the Kress Pavilion, where participants can win WPR prizes, plus Midsummer’s Music tickets and other items. The second concert is at 7:00pm on May 24 at the Art Garage in Green Bay. The third concert is at 5:00pm on May 25 at the Hope United Church of Christ in Sturgeon Bay. Free concert tickets are available through Midsummer Music’s website – midsummersmusic.com – or by calling 920-854-7088 during business hours. Registration for WPR’s “Music Bingo” can be made at eventbrite.com/e/wpr-music-bingo-egg-harbor-tickets-1308813078149.

One of the most vibrant and engaging quartets of its generation, the Griffon String Quartet was formed in the fall of 2018 as a collaboration led by Midsummer’s Music. GSQ enriches the lives of children and adults throughout northeast Wisconsin through concerts, workshops, and music education outreach. The extraordinary musicians, who have performed with orchestras and ensembles around the globe, are equally dedicated to music education and inspiring the next generation of music lovers. Each member of the Griffon String Quartet has advanced degrees and significant professional experience, both as educators and performers, and they have been recognized for “their youthful vigor, which is absolutely infectious!”

Midsummer’s Music was co-founded in 1990 by Jim and Jean Berkenstock, long-time Door County summer residents and principal orchestral players with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. What began as two concerts among friends has become one of the Midwest’s most anticipated chamber music series, bringing thousands of chamber music enthusiasts from around the globe to the magical Door County Peninsula.