Local Benicia Violinist Debuts New String Quartet

Wrap your weekend in the bows, strings and sounds of at 2 pm, this Saturday, December 3, at , 120 East J Street.  

The professional string quartet features Benicia resident and founder, Clif Foster violin, Elbert Tsai, violin, Caroline Lee, viola and Michael Graham, cello.  The program includes works by Haydn, Dvorak and Bartok.  Each of these composers had “a great output of string quartets,” Foster said.  “This repertoire is fabulous for this ensemble, these people are wonderful players.”  

In addition to six years of organizing chamber music events in Benicia, Foster teaches violin and both envisions, and has worked to create, a local youth string ensemble program.  “I’ll try it every year,” he says, “but it’s difficult to get the combination of players to do a chamber music program.”  

Such a local youth music program would greatly benefit from Foster’s ongoing experience as a member of the “Artists in Residence” String Quartet with the Berkeley Youth Orchestra.  BYO is a multidimensional program for young musicians in the 5th through 10th grades.  Their “Artists in Residence” String Quartet uses professional “modeling” and instruction to raise the level of support for orchestra members.  

A graduate of the American Conservatory of Music, Foster is a tenured member of the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra and has played under such highly regarded conductors as Carlo Maria Giulini, Georg Solti and Daniel Barenboim.  He has performed on recordings with Art Pepper and Linda Ronstadt, was Concertmaster for the Yanni World Tour, and performed live with Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban and Sarah Brightman among others.

Foster lives with his wife Paula and their German Shepherd Bogey.

General admission is $15 at the door and free for students.