The Thalea String Quartet explores the sounds and textures that inspired Ravel’s masterful string quartet in a performance that celebrates the rich musical and artistic influences of Asia. Composed in 1903, the same year as the construction of the Pillsbury Castle in Minneapolis, Ravel’s string quartet draws on the music of the Indonesian gamelan, a sound that thrilled both him and his colleague Claude Debussy when they heard it at the Paris Exhibition in 1889. In this program, TSQ will pair Ravel’s work with music by Gabriella Smith, Dinuk Wijeratne, and Shen Yiwen for a thrilling musical exploration.