(Ross Snyder. Photo by Arthur Moeller)
On February 14, High Desert Chamber Music will continue their 18th season by welcoming the Tesla Quartet to perform in the annual Valentine’s Day concert. I had the opportunity to speak with violinist Ross Snyder about his discovery and journey into music, the founding of the Quartet, and music that has influenced his musical journey.
Ross grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His parents were not professional musicians but were very active in church and community choirs, so there was definitely an affinity for music around the house. “I think my parents recognized very early on that I had an aptitude for music as a toddler, and they provided plenty of opportunities for musical exposure,” Ross told me. At the age of three, Ross was influenced by his neighbor to begin playing a musical instrument. His neighbor played the trumpet, but his parents were told that might be a little heavy for a three-year old, so violin it was! Ross told me that luckily they lived close to a Suzuki music school, so that’s where he began his violin lessons. “I can’t really say I was attracted to the violin specifically,” he told me, “but it drew me further and further into the world of music year after year.”
Ross founded the Tesla Quartet while he was a graduate student at the Juilliard School in 2008 along with three others who were studying in the master’s program. “While we were initially playing together for chamber music credit, we soon decided that we wanted to drive more seriously into the work and see if we could build something long-term.” After graduating from Juilliard, the quartet moved to Boulder, Colorado, where they studied with the Takacs Quartet, who were the graduate quartet-in-residence at the University of Colorado. After three years of studying, the Quartet started travelling internationally for concerts and competitions. They have had their current roster since 2023, when cellist Austin Fisher joined. The quartet is currently based back on the East Coast.
Ross has had many experiences throughout his career in solo, orchestral, and chamber music. When asked if he had a preferred music niche, Ross told me, “I’ve always felt equally at home playing chamber music and in an orchestra, but my heart has always been in the string quartet. It’s the right balance of personal expression and collective cooperation, and I find the repertoire to be the most rewarding — and challenging!” Some of his favorite works include the string quartets of Haydn. Ross told me, “I love how inventive Haydn’s quartets are, and the fact that he wrote 68 of them, each one a gem, is astounding.” Additionally, Maurice Ravel’s String Quartet is one work that means the most to Ross personally. He told me, “Hearing it as a teenager for the first time — performed by students at the Killington Music Festival in a little chapel in rural Vermont — was one of those musically defining moments. I fell in love with Ravel’s harmonic language and the colors he evokes in the piece.” In fact, he remembers that he wanted to re-listen to it so much that after coming home, he called into the local classical music station to have it played during their “listener’s request” program!
Please join us on Saturday, February 14 at 7:30pm at the Tower Theater in Downtown Bend for a romantic program of Dvorak, traditional Danish melodies, and Beethoven. There will be a concert preview at 6:45pm and this evening is brought to you by German Mater Tech. Tickets are available through High Desert Chamber Music by phone or online.