ACCLAIMED CLASSICAL MUSICIANS, THE SCHULHOFF QUARTET TO PERFORM AT BENEFIT CONCERT FOR HEBREW UNION COLLEGE - JEWISH INSTITUTE OF RELIGION’S SCHOLARSHIP FUND

Acclaimed classical musicians, the Schulhoff Quartet, have announced that they will play a concert for Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC - JIR). The concert, which will take place on Thursday March 13th at the Irmas Campus of Wilshire Boulevard Temple in Los Angeles, will showcase the works of Haydn, Tchaikovsky, and Erwin Schulhoff, a composer from the Czech Republic who died in a concentration camp during the Holocaust.

Proceeds from the concert will be used to provide scholarships for students who are attending HUC - JIR and training to become rabbis, cantors, Jewish educators and Jewish communal service professionals.

Founded in 1875, HUC - JIR is the nation’s oldest institution of higher Jewish education and the academic, spiritual and professional development center of Reform Judaism. HUC - JIR educates men and women for service as rabbis, cantors, educators and communal service professionals, offers graduate and postgraduate degree programs for scholars of all faiths and is committed to ensuring the vitality of our Jewish heritage for generations to come.

The Schulhoff Quartet is made up of four Czech musicians, Milan Šetena, violin, Michal Kostka, violin, Filip Waulin, viola and Jonáš Krejcí, violoncello who first met and played together during their school years. Their career paths have since taken them to such renowned musical institutions as the Vienna Philharmonic, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra and the Petersen Quartet, but they have maintained their musical collaboration through the years.

The Schulhoff Quartet has a special interest in the musicians of their home country who died at the hands of the Nazis. Composers such as Gidon Klein, Hans Krasa, Viktor Ullman and Erwin Schulhoff, from whom the Quartet has taken its name, left behind a wealth of musical literature and the Schulhoff Quartet’s goal is to bring this music back to Central Europe from where it originated.

NOTES TO NEWS EDITORS

1. Milan Šetena, violin, was born in Prague, where he began violin lessons at a young age. He studied at the Prague Conservatory in the class of František Pospíšil. During his studies at the conservatory, he was the concertmaster of the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra. He then moved to Vienna, where he continued his studies with Professor Alfred Staar. He has been a member of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra since 1990, performing at the Vienna State Opera and the Philharmonie. Additionally, he performs regularly with chamber ensembles throughout the world.

2. Michal Kostka, violin, was born in Celadné in northern Moravia. He began learning the violin from his father. He studied at the Brno Conservatory, and received his degree from the Janácek Music Academy in Brno. He continued his studies in Graz with Professor Alfred Staar at the University for Music and the Performing Arts. He performed with the Vienna Symphony, and was concertmaster of the Bruckner Orchestra Linz, before becoming a member of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Vienna State Opera in 1993. He has also been a regular member of the Vienna String Soloists since 1994.

3. Filip Waulin, viola, was born in Prague. He began violin lessons with Prof. Jan Bubl, and subsequently studied at the Prague Conservatory with Prof. Jaroslav Ruis and Prof. Libor Novak. During his studies, he performed with the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra. He then moved to Vienna, where he studied with Prof. H.P. Oxenhofer and Prof. Josef Staar. He performed with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra. Since 1991, he has performed regularly in the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the Vienna State Opera Orchestra.

4. Jonáš Krejcí, violoncello, was born in London and raised in Prague. He studied at the Prague Conservatory, and spent a year in London studying with William Pleeth. He received a scholarship from the University of Southern California, where he studied for four years with Lynn Harrell. During his time in Los Angeles, he performed in the LA Philharmonic Institute and the New York String Orchestra. After completing his studies, he returned to Europe. He has been the principal cellist of the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, and has performed with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. As a member first of the Škampa Quartet and then of the Petersen Quartet, he has appeared in major concert venues throughout the world, such as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center in New York. As a soloist, he has performed with orchestras and given recitals in the USA, Czech Republic, Austria, Germany and Japan.

5. The concert is to be held at Wilshire Boulevard Temple, Irmas Campus. The Irmas Campus is located at 11661 Olympic Boulevard, on the northeast corner of Olympic Boulevard and Barrington Avenue in West Los Angeles.