Press Kit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 7, 2012
Saint John String Quartet recording attracts JUNO nomination; A posthumous tribute to a great Canadian composer
A recording by the Saint John String Quartet of Jacques Hétu’s String Quartet No. 2 attracted a JUNO nomination in the Classical Composition of the Yearcategory. The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences announced the posthumous tribute to Canadian composer Jacques Hétu in a press conference today.
“The Saint John String Quartet focuses a lot of time on performing and recording works that are new, innovative or underappreciated in the classical music world, and Jacques Hetu’s composition is all of those,” said David Adams, violinist, “We recorded this work and submitted it for a JUNO because we felt that this composition deserves more attention.”
Jacques Hétu, OC (August 8, 1938 – February 9, 2010) was a Canadian composer and music educator from Trois-Rivières, Quebec. String Quartet No. 2 Op. 50 was written in 1991, one of 70 known works by the celebrated Canadian. Hétu described his music as incorporating "neo-classical forms and neo-romantic effects in a musical language using 20th-century techniques.”
Saint John String Quartet and Jacques Dupriez is the name of the album featuring the work. This is the fourth album by the Saint John String Quartet, who will be celebrating their 25th anniversary this year. Laurissa Chitty, a violinist from British Columbia, recently joined the Quartet's three original members - David Adams (violin), Chris Buckley (viola) and Sonja Adams (cello).
“We’re proud to be able to produce this kind of work and still call New Brunswick home,” continued Adams. “We owe a lot of gratitude for the support we’ve received from many individuals and organizations in our community including Symphony New Brunswick, UNB Saint John and the Government of New Brunswick.”
The 41st Annual JUNO Awards will be held in Ottawa, Ontario on March, 31st, 2012.
The album, Saint John String Quartet and Jacques Dupriez, is available at select local retail outlets, at Symphony New Brunswick and Saint John String Quartet concerts, as well as on iTunes and CDBaby.
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For more information, contact: David Adams, (506) 657-5102