Samuel Rhodes is a consummate artist, well known as recitalist, soloist with orchestra, recording artist, composer, and teacher. His artistry has become well recognized and his playing has received international critical acclaim. The New York Times has called him "a remarkably sensitive violist"; the Washington Post has described him as a "master of the viola fit to stand with the instrument's greatest"; the Boston Herald wrote, "the texture of his sound is in itself a wonder"; in London they praised his "stunning range of color"; and in Paris he was called "a violist of the very first rank."
Mr. Rhodes is celebrating his 40th year as a member of both the Juilliard String Quartet and the faculty of the Juilliard School where he is chair of the viola department. He also has been a participant in the Marlboro Music Festival since 1960 and is a faculty member of the Tanglewood Music Center. His solo appearances have included several recitals at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC and an unaccompanied recital at the Juilliard School highlighted by world premieres of works by Milton Babbitt and Arthur Weisberg; and recitals in Hamburg, Germany, and at Juilliard in 2008 celebrating his 40 years in the Juilliard String Quartet. In 1985, he supervised and performed in a recital series at Carnegie's Weill Hall celebrating the 90th birthday of Paul Hindemith. In 1996, he organized and performed in a similar recital series at Columbia University's Miller Theatre commemorating Hindemith's 100th anniversary. In 1998, he gave the world premiere of Donald Martino's "Three Sad Songs" for viola and piano with Thomas Sauer at the Library of Congress. In June 2001, Mr. Rhodes was invited to play a recital consisting of the Babbitt, "Play it Again, Sam" and the Vieuxtemps Sonata at the 10th anniversary of the "Viola Space" series at Casals Hall in Tokyo, Japan. He gave the world premiere of "Figment IV" for solo viola by Elliott Carter in January 2008 in Paris. In 1998, Mr. Rhodes had the honor of being invited to join the late Isaac Stern as a coach at his Chamber Music Workshops in Jerusalem, Israel; followed by workshops in Miyazaki, Japan; and Carnegie Hall, New York.
Mr. Rhodes, a native New Yorker, studied the viola with Sydney Beck and Walter Trampler. He has a B.A. from Queens College of the City University of New York and an M.F.A. from Princeton University, where he studied composition with Roger Sessions and Earl Kim. As a composer, he wrote a String Quintet for two violins, two violas and cello, which has been performed by the Blair, Composer's, Galimir, Pro Arte, and Sequoia Quartets. The Pro Arte Quartet recently recorded the quintet with the composer as guest.
As a member of the Juilliard String Quartet, Mr. Rhodes toured throughout Europe, North and South America, the Near East, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand; has recorded an extensive catalogue of the string quartet literature on the CBS Masterworks, Sony Classical, Wergo, and CRI labels; has won three Grammy Awards for the Debussy and Ravel Quartets, the complete Schoenberg Quartets, and the complete Beethoven Quartets; and has commissioned and performed the world premieres of works by Milton Babbitt, Elliott Carter, Mario Davidovsky, Henri Dutilleux, Alberto Ginastera, John Harbison, Fred Lerdahl, Donald Martino, Morton Subotnick, Ezequiel Viñao, Stefan Wolpe, and Richard Wernick. In 2002, the quartet gave the world premieres of newly commissioned works by Ralph Shapey and Gunther Schuller. In 2003, the quartet celebrated 40 years of residency at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC by performing a Beethoven cycle combined with distinguished American works by Shapey, Schuller, Milton Babbitt, Elliott Carter, Ruth Crawford Seeger, and including the world premiere of the Horn Quintet by Richard Wernick. In 2006-2007, the quartet celebrated its 60th anniversary by presenting the cycle of six quartets of Bela Bartók in seven different cities including New York and Tokyo. In 2007-2008, the quartet gave world premieres of the late Ralph Shapey's Clarinet Quintet, with Charles Neidich, and Piano Quintet, with Gilbert Kalish, as well as the world premiere of the Elliott Carter's Clarinet Quintet, with Mr. Neidich.
Mr. Rhodes has also been artist-in-residence at Michigan State University and has been awarded honorary doctorates by Michigan State, the University of Jacksonville, and the San Francisco Conservatory. He has appeared as a guest artist with the Beaux Arts and Mannes Trios, and with the American, Blair, Brentano, Cleveland, Galimir, Guarneri, Mendelssohn, Pro Arte, and Sequoia String Quartets.
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