What do you get when you cross a string quartet with a Steinway? A viano, according to the ensemble of that name. (They replaced the “p” in piano with the first letter of their violins, viola, and violincello, styling themselves as a single instrument, like the piano, playing both melody and harmony.) The Viano String Quartet was formed in 2015 at the Colburn Conservatory, five years after the Calidore String Quartet, this season’s opening artists. For “The Way Forward,” a film developed during the pandemic, the eight Colburn alumni joined virtually from different countries to perform a movement of the Mendelssohn Octet. The young Vianos are currently the Nina von Maltzahn String Quartet-in-Residence at the Curtis Institute (which helped Chamber Music Lehigh Valley get started 70 years ago). The ensemble has been recognized early and often with a ton of prestigious awards and bookings. They continue to receive mentoring from impressive veteran quartets, as well as individual musical giants, and are already “playing” it forward through residencies and performances for school children.

Beethoven: String Quartet in C Minor, Op. 18., No. 4
Kevin Lau: The Train To Impossible Places
Price: “Andante Cantabile” from String Quartet in G Major
Franck: Piano Quintet