As a major component of the Educational Outreach program of the Friends of DaPonte String Quartet (FDSQ), four students of high school age will be chosen annually to be in the DaPonte Honors Quartet. This string ensemble program is designed to inspire Maine’s youth music community by providing focused, intensive training for one year with professional chamber musicians - a stellar opportunity.

By creating this ensemble, the FDSQ takes one additional step in our journey towards establishing a comprehensive Educational wing; one that now includes the Adult Workshop, the International Summer Institute for early career students, the High School workshop, the DaPonte Honors Quartet, and K-12 outreach. This program will be free to all students. It provides targeted, ongoing, high-quality chamber music instruction to young artists, thereby significantly impacting the student’s musical journey. In addition, this program will provide guidance to students in communication, collaboration, organizational skills, and creative problem solving.

DaPonte Honors Quartet members will be chosen from DSQ high school workshop participants, which will be held this year on September 17-19, 2021. Registration information for this free workshop can be found at our website: daponte.org or at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/daponte-2021-string-quartet-workshop-for-high-school-string-players-registration-147131603587?aff=ebdssbeac

DaPonte Honors Quartet students will receive weekly, in-person instruction from DSQ musicians, and additionally, will participate in at least one ensemble rehearsal per week. The DaPonte Honors Quartet will perform at least two concerts per year, and will represent the FDSQ on school visits, along with DSQ musicians. In addition, the DaPonte Honors Quartet will be showcased at FDSQ Special Events. The DaPonte Honors Quartet will be student mentors at the high school workshop at the end of their year.

Creation of the DaPonte Honors Quartet provides an opportunity to greatly enrich the lives of four students each year, as well as deepening their knowledge and passion for chamber music.

The DaPonte String Quartet performances affirm chamber music as a vital and living art form. Fresh conception requires original thought, and the DSQ's is based on solid research, extensive scholarship, and meticulous preparation. Their concerts are dynamic and their stage manner — with one another and with their audiences — is warm and conversational. The Quartet members regularly share musical insights with their audiences before playing and these "spoken program notes" enable the listener to enter into a deeper connection with the music. The DSQ musicians provide students a direct line to the great tradition of Austro-Hungarian string technique and literature. They are pleased to have this special opportunity to pass on this legacy.

The DaPonte String Quartet is now in its 30th season and its members are still proud to call Maine home!