Capital City Concerts Presents | New Beginnings with Palaver Strings Quartet

After more than a quarter-century of leadership, Capital City Concerts founder, Vermont Grammy‑nominated flutist Karen Kevra, passed the artistic leadership of the organization to husband-and-wife musicians Jillian Reed and Tyler Emerson. Read the full announcement here. 

This season's opening concert is a celebration of new beginnings and musical friendships, featuring works dedicated to composers' friends and teachers. Capital City Concerts welcomes a string quartet from Grammy-nominated Palaver Strings (Maïthéna Girault & Maya French, violin; Brianna Fischler, viola; and Matt Smith, cello) and CCC's new artistic directors, flutist Jillian Reed and pianist Tyler Emerson, with a performance of treasured works and hidden gems from the French Romantic era.

Filip Holacký -  United States Premiere of Quartet for Flute, Violin, Cello and Piano (2022) 
Maurice Ravel - String Quartet in F Major (1903), dedicated to composer Gabriel Fauré.
Germaine Tailleferre - String Quartet (1919) dedicated to pianist Artur Rubinstein
Clémence de Grandval - Suite for Flute and Piano (1876) dedicated to composer Paul Taffanel

Palaver Strings is a musician-led string ensemble and nonprofit organization based in Portland, ME. Founded in 2014, Palaver’s mission is to strengthen and inspire community through music. The GRAMMY-nominated ensemble’s recent engagements include concerts at Tanglewood, National Sawdust and Carnegie Hall, and residencies at Rockport Music, Boston Center for the Arts and Longy School of Music, where ensemble members offer master classes and graduate courses on music and community engagement. Palaver’s newest album "A Change Is Gonna Come" (Azica Records, 2024) features Nicholas Phan and Farayi Malek on new arrangements of American protest songs. In 2019, Palaver launched the Palaver Music Center, which now serves hundreds of students each year from its downtown Portland location. Learn more about Palaver Strings at their website.

​Capital City Concerts, based in Montpelier, Vermont, presents unique chamber music concerts performed by some of the world's finest musicians from Vermont and beyond. Founded by Grammy‑nominated flutist Karen Kevra in 2000, CCC is now led by husband-and-wife musicians Jillian Reed, flute, and Tyler Emerson, piano. Learn more about Capital City Concerts and their other upcoming concerts on their website and read the full announcement about the transition in leadership here.