Hailed by the New York Times as “invariably energetic and finely burnished,” the Catalyst Quartet plays with “overflowing energy” (Chicago) and “perfect ensemble unity” (Lincoln Journal Star).
On Sunday, April 12, the Grammy-winning ensemble will present an intimate recital as part of the Great Artists Series at Washington University in St. Louis.
The program will open with two major works by Florence Price. Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1887, Price was the first African American woman to have a symphonic work performed by a major orchestra. After her death, in 1953, Price’s music fell into relative obscurity but in recent years has been championed by musicians and scholars alike.
“Negro Folksongs in Counterpoint” is dated 1950 but may have been started as early as 1927. One of just two works Price wrote for string quartet, it was soon revised and followed by “Five Negro Folksongs in Counterpoint.” Both are based on traditional hymns and spirituals but showcase Price’s gift for densely layered and joyously volatile compositions.
Next on the program will be “Sorrow Song and Jubilee” by contemporary composer Libby Larsen. The short 2014 piece is based on the hymn “Swing Low Sweet Chariot.”
Following intermission, the Catalyst Quartet will perform Antonín Dvořák’s beloved Quartet in F Major, Op. 96., commonly known as the “American Quartet.” Written in 1893 during a summer vacation among the Czech community of Spillville, Iowa, the piece evokes African American and Native American music as well as the vast, open expanses of the American countryside.
Catalyst Quartet
Founded in 2010, the Catalyst Quartet features violinists Karla Donehew Perez and Abi Fayette, violist Paul Laraia and cellist Karlos Rodriguez. The ensemble has toured widely throughout the United States and abroad, including sold-out performances at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Harris Theater in Chicago, the New World Center in Miami and the Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage at New York’s Carnegie Hall.
Members of the Catalyst Quartet have been guest soloists with the Cincinnati Symphony, the New Haven Symphony, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and the Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá. They have served as principal players with the Sphinx Organization’s featured ensemble, the Sphinx Virtuosi, on six national tours.
Great Artists Series
Sponsored by the Department of Music in Arts & Sciences, the Great Artists Series hosts intimate recitals with some of the brightest stars on the contemporary concert stage. Following Catalyst, the spring series will conclude April 30 with British cellist Steven Isserlis and Canadian pianist Connie Shih.
For information about the 2026-27 series, visit click here.
Tickets and related event
The performance will begin at 7 p.m. Sunday, April 12, in the E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall. Tickets are $40, or $37 for seniors and WashU faculty and staff, and $15 for students and children. Tickets are available through the WashU Box Office, 314-935-6543. For more information, visit music.wustl.edu.
In addition, the Catalyst Quartet will present a free masterclass at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 11, also in the E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall. For more information, click here.
The E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall is located in the 560 Music Center, 560 Trinity Ave., at the intersection with Delmar Boulevard. The Great Artists Series is made possible with support from the Regional Arts Commission and from the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency.
