Mini-Chamber 3
with Andrew Cooperstock - Piano

Saturday, January 17, 2026
7:30 – 9:00 PM
Boulder Adventist Church

Andrew Cooperstock - Piano
Artist-in-Residence

in collaboration with

Annamaria Karacson - Violin
Daniel Colbert - Violin
Stephanie Mientka - Viola
Erin Patterson - Cello

Program

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975)
Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57 (1940)
I. Prelude: Lento
II. Fugue: Adagio
III. Scherzo: Allegretto
IV. Intermezzo: Lento
V. Finale: Allegretto

Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44 (1842)
I. Allegro brillante
II. In modo d'una marcia. Un poco largamente
III. Scherzo: Molto vivace
IV. Allegro ma non troppo

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Andrew Cooperstock
Piano

Pianist Andrew Cooperstock performs widely as soloist and chamber musician and has appeared throughout six continents and in most of the fifty states, including performances at New York's Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the United Nations; at the Chautauqua, Brevard, and Round Top music festivals, the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, and Hong Kong’s Hell Hot! New Music Festival, and on National Public Radio, Radio France, and the British Broadcasting Corporation. With violinist William Terwilliger, as Opus Two, he has recorded a series of critically acclaimed single-composer discs of […]

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Annamaria Karacson
Violin

Hungarian-born Annamaria Karacson has resided in Boulder with her family since 1986. After completing her studies at Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, she became assistant concertmaster of the Hungarian Opera and Philharmonic Orchestras with whom she toured extensively throughout Europe. She was also a founding member of the renown Hungarian Festival Orchestra along with Ivan Fischer. She won first prize in the Hungarian Opera’s violin competition, first prize in the Budapest String Quartet competition with the Takacs String Quartet and […]

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Daniel Colbert
Violin

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Stephanie Mientka
Viola

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Cras volutpat ullamcorper elementum. Curabitur viverra lobortis justo, a hendrerit sem euismod at. Fusce ultricies massa vel libero bibendum gravida. Vestibulum ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia curae; Vestibulum elementum tortor sed quam bibendum bibendum. Aenean ut felis quis neque maximus lacinia. Curabitur aliquam erat tortor, sed feugiat orci faucibus et. Proin semper id nisi sit amet malesuada. Nunc mi augue, luctus at lorem nec, efficitur placerat velit. […]

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Erin Patterson
Cello

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Cras volutpat ullamcorper elementum. Curabitur viverra lobortis justo, a hendrerit sem euismod at. Fusce ultricies massa vel libero bibendum gravida. Vestibulum ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia curae; Vestibulum elementum tortor sed quam bibendum bibendum. Aenean ut felis quis neque maximus lacinia. Curabitur aliquam erat tortor, sed feugiat orci faucibus et. Proin semper id nisi sit amet malesuada. Nunc mi augue, luctus at lorem nec, efficitur placerat velit. […]

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PROGRAM NOTES

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975)
Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57 (1940)

Dmitri Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57, is one of the composer’s most celebrated chamber works, admired for its emotional breadth, architectural clarity, and deep lyricism. Composed in 1940, at a time when Shostakovich was navigating the perilous artistic environment of Stalinist Russia, the quintet strikes a careful balance between expressive sincerity and formal restraint. It was written for the Beethoven Quartet, with whom Shostakovich enjoyed a long and fruitful collaboration, and he himself premiered the work at the piano in Moscow to great acclaim.

The quintet opens with a Prelude that is noble and solemn in tone, unfolding with quiet intensity. Its broad, searching lines give way to the second movement, a Fugue of profound beauty and introspection. Here, Shostakovich channels the spirit of J.S. Bach, layering voices in a somber and austere musical meditation. The pairing of these first two movements creates a sense of reverence, as if the listener is entering a private, sacred space.

The third movement breaks the spell. A brisk and mischievous Scherzo offers rhythmic vitality and sarcastic charm, with bright contrasts and sparkling wit. This is Shostakovich in his most extroverted and theatrical mode—cheeky, unpredictable, and full of clever turns. The energy then recedes into the Intermezzo, a deeply introspective slow movement that feels suspended in time. Tender and elegiac, it offers one of the quintet’s most emotionally direct moments, as though revealing a vulnerability carefully guarded in the earlier movements.

The Finale brings a return to brighter spirits. It opens quietly but steadily gains momentum, moving toward a theme of gentle optimism and warmth. There is no grandiose climax or dramatic flourish—instead, the piece ends with graceful understatement, a characteristic Shostakovich gesture that suggests both closure and ambiguity.

Throughout the quintet, Shostakovich’s mastery of counterpoint, motivic development, and ensemble balance is on full display. The writing gives equal voice to the piano and strings, with each player contributing to the work’s rich and varied textures. In a time of political censorship and personal risk, Shostakovich offered a composition that was both artistically daring and politically safe—music that honors tradition, speaks with honesty, and leaves a lasting impression of quiet resilience.

Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44 (1842)

Robert Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat Major stands as one of the defining works of Romantic chamber music. Composed in 1842—a year in which Schumann devoted himself almost exclusively to chamber music—it was a revolutionary contribution to the genre. Before this, the piano quintet was a relatively rare form, often featuring the piano as an accompanist to the strings. Schumann changed that, writing a work in which the piano and strings are full partners, engaging in a spirited and sophisticated dialogue that unfolds with energy, poetry, and invention.

The quintet opens with bold, joyful music—spirited, lyrical, and immediately engaging. The piano leads with an exuberant theme, echoed and developed by the strings, establishing a sense of grandeur that persists throughout the work. This celebratory tone gives way to a second movement that offers a striking emotional contrast: a slow, solemn funeral march. Yet even within this more introspective space, Schumann introduces moments of warmth, dramatic tension, and delicate beauty, avoiding gloom in favour of emotional complexity.

From there, the work moves into a scherzo brimming with rhythmic vitality and quicksilver wit. Its leaping motifs and rapid interplay are briefly interrupted by lyrical episodes before returning to a whirlwind of activity. The finale builds upon all that has come before with remarkable compositional craftsmanship. Schumann recalls earlier musical ideas and weaves them into a jubilant fugal texture that surges toward a triumphant conclusion. The sense of cohesion across the entire work is subtle but deeply satisfying—proof of Schumann’s structural genius as well as his emotional range.

Dedicated to his wife, the great pianist Clara Schumann, and premiered with her at the keyboard, the quintet reflects both Robert’s deep affection and his trust in her extraordinary abilities. Today, it is one of the most frequently performed piano quintets in the repertoire—a work that captures the Romantic spirit in full bloom, balancing intimacy and grandeur, intellect and passion, in a way that continues to captivate audiences nearly two centuries after its creation.