Ives Quartet

Founded in 1983, the Ives Quartet performs the full scope of string quartet literature ranging from recognized classics to new commissions. Formerly in residence at Stanford University as the Stanford String Quartet, the ensemble departed in 1998 to seek greater artistic independence. Ives serves a primarily South Bay audience of approximately 2,000 (600 paid attendance) through its three-concert season in Palo Alto and San Jose and a national/international touring audience of a further 2,000. The quartet, comprised of Stanford University and San Francisco Conservatory of Music faculty, plays a diverse repertoire but prides itself on performing, what founding cellist calls, "underappreciated American music." Works in the 2007-08 season range from Verdi and Beethoven to Leo Ornstein and Quincy Porter, and each performance mixes work both familiar and obscure. During the past grant period the board of the Ives Quartet hired its first full time staff member, an administrative/development director, and renewed funding will primarily be used to support this position and strengthen the 10-year-old organization’s operational capacity. General operating support for the Ives Quartet, which operates on an $180,000 annual budget, furthers the Performing Arts programs’ strategic objectives to promote artistic excellence and creative expression. (Renewal, $54/3; 10% of organization budget)