Meet Well-Strung—the handsome and hunky, all-male string quartet who are hitting all the right notes with their unique hybrid of classical music and contemporary pop. By putting their own spin on the music of Mozart, Vivaldi, Rihanna, Adele and Lady Gaga—Daniel Shevlin ( cello ), Chris Marchant ( violin ), Edmund Bagnell ( violin ), and Trevor Wadleight ( viola )—are breaking down barriers between musical genres.
The string and singing quartet ( yes, they also sing ) are comprised of four openly gay men who got their start in Provincetown, Mass.
"P-Town is definitely a magical place—it has such an amazing artistic community," said Marchant, who was in Provincetown performing in Naked Boys Singing—and playing violin on the street to earn extra cash—when he was approached by a producer in 2010. That meeting eventually led to the formation of Well-Strung.
"What's great about P-Town is that people are coming there from all over the country who are in the arts," added Marchant. "There's a constant influx of tourists and when they go back to wherever they are from they tell people about us—which really sets things up well for touring."
Before Well-Strung heads to London this fall for their European debut, the quartet will be performing in Chicago Oct. 18-19 at the Center on Halsted.
In an interview with Windy City Times, Marchant and Shevlin didn't strike one false note as they revealed what it's like to be hot and well-strung, how they select their contemporary music, and what they like most about Chicago.
Windy City Times: What do you think is the biggest misconception about Well-Strung?
Daniel Shevlin: That we perform naked. We don't know why. Maybe the name alludes to that a little, and one of our posters from last year was pretty scandalous. It was a great poster!
WCT: You mentioned the name of the quartet—which one of you was clever enough to come up with "Well-Strung?"
Chris Marchant: The name Well-Strung came up before the quartet existed. I did an interview and photo-shoot with DNA magazine in the fall of 2011, and the title of the spread was Well-Strung, and we decided to use it.
WCT: Clearly, each member of the quartet is handsome and fit as a fiddle—do you simply own the fact that your physical appeal is part of what draws people to the shows or does that reality annoy you on some level?
Chris Marchant: The idea behind that is… [Pauses and starts again]The people who feel confident about their appearance are going to be good performers. Our goal is not to create the highest level of classical music perfection. Our goal is to expose audiences to new music in new ways and in a fantastic way, and in order to do that we need "performers." Our goals are different than those of a typical string quartet. We've often gotten criticism from people who say that there is no substance there, and that we just look pretty. But then people see the show and their minds tend to change if they walk in with that perception.
Daniel Shevlin: Another thing about our show is that we talk about ourselves and how we got started. People get past the image they have us, I think, and see what is inside of us and what we are about.
Chris Marchant: We talk about where we came from and about our childhood, and we feature a slideshow depicting each of our awkward phases. We tell people that, 'Hey, no matter where you come from, if you set your mind to it you can accomplish anything.'
WCT: Do you talk about growing up gay? Were any of you bullied or taunted for being gay as a kid?
Daniel Shevlin: As far as the show goes, we don't broach the bullying topic. The show is not about us growing up gay and discovering our sexual identity. Our stories pertain to the four of us growing up as dorky musicians!
Chris Marchant: We just happen to be four gay guys putting on this show. Any four classical musicians could put on this same show.
WCT: Speaking of growing up as "dorky musicians," can I get your ages? How old are you?
Daniel Shevlin: We don't want to say our ages—but I can tell you I am the oldest.
Chris Marchant: And I am the second oldest.
WCT: For someone who has never seen your show, describe what it is you do.
Chris Marchant: So, our show is essentially a juxtaposition of classical music against mostly current Top 40s. We want to show that there is a through-line running through it all, through all music. Some people come to the show to hear more pop; some people come to hear more classical. But they all end up saying they love it in the end. We're also the only string quartet in the world who sings, so we're actually more like a band, and that seems to surprise some people.
Daniel Shevlin: We're also different from other string quartets because we move around on stage. We're not giving you ballet, mind you, but we are moving around a lot! Donna Drake, our director, gets us out of our chairs and into different positions. We don't use music so we don't have music stands—everything is memorized—and that gives a lot more freedom for how we can present ourselves on stage.
WCT: How do you select which contemporary songs to feature in the show?
Daniel Shevlin: When we are creating a show, we make lists of what songs we think are popular, including classic pop hits, and we try to figure out what songs are going to work for the quartet, in terms of arrangement and in terms of our voices.
Chris Marchant: My favorite [part of the show] is Ke$ha. People do not expect a string quartet to cover Ke$ha, but I think her music is really smart. I do.
Daniel Shevlin: [Laughs]
WCT: Did you just say you think Ke$ha's music is really smart?
Chris Marchant: Yes. And you can quote me on that. [Laughs]
WCT: Did you know each other prior to forming Well-Strung?
Chris Marchant: None of us knew each other. I knew of Edmond—but none of us had met before. After Mark [Cortale, producer/co-writer] approached me in Provincetown and asked me if wanted to collaborate on this project, I sent out a mass text message to all of my musical and musical theater friends, and that is how we found Daniel. We found him first, and then we did auditions in New York City in the winter of 2012.
WCT: You know some members of your gay male audience probably wonder if any of you Well-Strung fellows have hooked up or dated each other.
Chris Marchant: We've never dated each other.
WCT: There was a long pause before you gave your answer, Chris, which makes me think maybe there's something you're not telling me.
Daniel Shevlin: There's no funny business. [Laughs] We're kinda like brothers, so that would be very awkward!
WCT: Since you'll be performing in the heart of Boystown, do you think you'll have time to venture out and explore the neighborhood's nightlife?
Daniel Shevlin: I plan to go out, definitely. Sidetrack is the bar I am most familiar with—I've been there the most. I just really love Chicago as a city— even though I don't visit it often. I think the Art Institute is my favorite spot in the city.
Chris Marchant: I have a lot of friends in Chicago, and I'm actually looking forward to seeing a few people in shows while I'm there! My dad and mom and step-sisters are coming to see the show, so I am excited to spend some time with them as well.
WCT: When I mentioned to a colleague that I was interviewing two members of Well-Strung, I was asked to inquire whether or not practicing on the violin for hours on end builds muscle.
Chris Marchant: [Laughs] I would say, in general no, playing doesn't build muscle. Maybe a little bit of toning is involved, but on the whole, playing the violin is not a muscle-builder. I would have to be playing a tuba for that to happen!
Daniel Shevlin [to Chris]: You should come out with a violin workout video!
Well-Strung will be performing at the Center on Halsted's Hoover-Leppen Theatre on Friday-Saturday, Oct. 18-19, beginning at 6 p.m. To view the string quartet's latest video, titled "Well-Strung Mozart Meets Kelly Clarkson," go to www.youtube.com/watch .
Also, see www.well-strung.com and www.centeronhalsted.org for more info.
