Landolfi Quartet usually plays for private functions. However, members are involved in the freelance
community and perform with local professional and community orchestras.
One of these orchestras is
the Gateway Festival Orchestra (GFO). The orchestra performs free summer concerts and has been an
important part of the musical community since 1964.
The GFO engages the Landolfi Quartet to perform outreach concerts for children. We are all professional
music educators as well as professional musicians so we enjoy connecting with students. These
performances go to urban, underserved parts of the St. Louis region – day cares and summer camps.
Children are taught about the various aspects of music such as melody and harmony, as well as the wide
array of genres in music history – from Bach to Rock! We explain what it is like to play in a big orchestra
and give some students a chance to “conduct” the group.
A string quartet doesn’t use a conductor but demonstrates the importance of teamwork, personal
responsibility and synergy. We engage the audience by having them participate in movement activities
including “Where is Thumb-kin” and dancing to “Chicken Dance”. Students are given examples of
“musical imagery” while playing Vivaldi’s Spring with its depiction of birds chattering, water flowing and
even thunderstorms! Even though our audiences can be as young as 3-4 years old and up to 12 or so, seeing their eyes open a little wider in wonderment or just curiosity is rewarding.
For many of our audiences, this is the first time they have seen a group like ours. Live and “up close and personal”. We can only hope that our performances leave a lasting and meaningful impression on our young audiences that they can take with them for the rest of their lives.
