# Top string quartets that play contemporary music?



## wlad

Hello everybody!

Could you please recommend me some of the best string quartet groups that play mostly contemporary music? I've been listening mainly to Kronos, but I don't know many others...Would appreciate if you share your favorite groups!

Thanks!


----------



## Sid James

The Arditti Quartet & of yesteryear, the LaSalle Quartet.

BTW, welcome to the forum...


----------



## starry

http://www.talkclassical.com/11877-current-quartets-similar-kronos.html


----------



## wlad

You guys are great, thank you so much!


----------



## Edward Elgar

Has anyone mentioned the JACK Quartet?






Amazing group.


----------



## tdc

Andre said:


> The Arditti Quartet & of yesteryear, the LaSalle Quartet.
> 
> BTW, welcome to the forum...


:lol:

OP = Andre's new favorite poster. (j/k)


----------



## Head_case

....and to expand on the list - if you're looking for left of the centre contemporary repetoire:

*The Section Quartet* (Fuzzbox and other pop.rock covers by Coldplay etc)
*The Vitamin Quartet *(they're everywhere)
*Sid Page Strings* (dunno if they have their own album out yet, but they did work with Aimee Mann etc)
*The Silesian Quartet* (cover contemporary songs of a Polish rock star Gregoire Chewosomebodyowski)
*St Lawrence String Quarte*t and Christos Hatzis (Canadian composer) - eclectic contemporary with choo choo trains

PS - I was rather disappointed at the Kronos Quartet's collaboration with pipa player Wu Man. It was quite a dire collaboration so perhaps don't start with that one!

and contemporary classical (more tautly 'classical' in convention):

*Carmina Quartet *(their last release - can't remember the title off the top of my head - it's of that Swiss composer guy)
*Danel Quatuor *-Invenciones Tangueras (a tango and string quartet collaboration); Dusapin & Koering's string quartets; Lampson's Fadenkreuze; Flender Aurora (collaboration based on Threnody/Threnos IV); collaboration with Zhang Hao Fu on clarinet;
*Wilanow Quartet *- cover modern works by Slowinski, Gorecki and Meyer - very typical repertoire of the Kronos Quartet
*Cuarteto Latinoamericano* - listen to the female vocalist over string quartet in Ginastera's works. This is just unreal. Schoenberg has a similar layout in one string quartet, although perhaps you already have his string quartets.

You will probably like some of the *Chilingirian Quartet*'s less popular classic album covering Firsova, Denissov and Smirnov (as well as Vasks) and Schnittke, although the Kronos' version of the Schnittke is my preferred version. It's unfortunate the others are so hard to find.


----------



## Jeremy Marchant

Carpe diem quartet. Some interesting music by Wolosoff on Naxos and by their viola player Karine Fujiwara on their own label.


----------



## Ukko

I guess it's a question of how flexible 'contemporary' is. I say it's compositions within my lifetime, and the JSQ has the finest recordings of those.

The Kronos are bums; The Arditti is talented and courageous - and usually incomprehensible.

:tiphat:


----------



## Vaneyes

Pacifica Quartet

http://www.pacificaquartet.com/concerts.html


----------



## robert

Arditti Kronos


----------



## robert

Hilltroll72 said:


> I guess it's a question of how flexible 'contemporary' is. I say it's compositions within my lifetime, and the JSQ has the finest recordings of those.
> 
> The Kronos are bums; The Arditti is talented and courageous - and usually incomprehensible.
> 
> :tiphat:
> 
> [/QUOTE
> 
> I take exception to your remark. You are entitled to your opinion. Can you explain to me how you could possibly call the Kronos Bums.....
> 
> ..


----------



## Vazgen

I'd like to include the Concord String Quartet. They've recorded versions of such contemporary compositions as the Kirchner Quartet No. 3 for String Quartet and Electronic Tape and the Quartet No. 5 of Lejaren Hiller.

-Vaz


----------



## Quartetfore

The Concord Quartet gave their last concert in 1987, although they did get together in 1996 for the Naumberg awards. Their most famous recoding was of George Rochbergs quartets. The original recording was an Lp, and then remastered for a CD. There was some interest in Rochbergs chamber works back in the 80`s but I don`t think there is much now.


----------



## Vazgen

The Lydian String Quartet are from Brandeis and play a good deal of contemporary music.

The Brentano Quartet has performed Charles Wuorinen's quartets. Their latest project is intriguing: six contemporary composers (Charles Wuorinen, Sofia Gubaidulina, John Harbison, Vijay Iyer, Bruce Adolphe, and Stephen Hartke) compose works using fragments of compositions by earlier composers (Dufay, Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Schubert, and Shostakovich).


----------



## Quartetfore

When my oldest Daughter was a student at Brandeis University she took instruction from members of the Lydian Quartet in the art of playing in a string quartet. My Daughter plays the Viola.


----------



## TRendfrey

Personally I like the Escala quartet as well as Kronos and a few other ones already mentioned.


----------



## Head_case

Quartetfore said:


> The Concord Quartet gave their last concert in 1987, although they did get together in 1996 for the Naumberg awards. Their most famous recoding was of George Rochbergs quartets. The original recording was an Lp, and then remastered for a CD. There was some interest in Rochbergs chamber works back in the 80`s but I don`t think there is much now.


I love their recordings. Not only did they master Rochberg's superb set - they also gave us the seminal set of American string quartets - from Druckman, Hiller, Crumb, Cage Wolpe and Wolff.

Their playing was of an era which I haven't heard being purveyed in this modern era - they'll go down as the classics when people start appreciating the contributions of American string quartet composers again.


----------



## Quartetfore

I think that it would help the cause of this music if an important American String Quartet would take up some of these works. The Emerson String Quartet would be the one to do it. They have recorded some American works, but I don`t think that they play much in concert.


----------



## FrankieP

Arditti, Kronos - all the way!!


----------



## Head_case

All good. 

Don't forget the Fred Sherry Quartet; the Pacifica Quartet (who are playing in England sooooon! woohoo!)


----------



## amzamz

... I also came across the Smith quartet, the Balanescu quartet, the Corigliano quartet, and the Del Sol quartet, which all feature contemporary classical recordings.


----------



## hreichgott

No one said Brooklyn Rider? They record all kinds of stuff written by composers who weren't even born till after some of the above-mentioned works were written...
http://brooklynrider.com/tagged/discography


----------



## Heliogabo

Arditti and Kronos for sure, but I'll add Doric string quartett.


----------



## Cheyenne

A selection of the largest concert halls in Europe in collaboration with ECHO fund the "Rising Stars" series, in which promising new musicians are given a stage to play their favorite repertoire and also a work especially commissioned for them. I was at a performance of the Quatuor Zaïde yesterday, a young French String Quartet, and they played Francesca Verunelli's Second String Quartet, a wonderful work written for them. I plan to go to more "Rising Star" performances to hear more of those newly written works!


----------



## PenaColada

The Arditti String Quartet are probably my favorite, their interpretation of Schoenberg and Webern string quartets are mind-blowing!


----------



## jurianbai

Maggini Quartet, played a lot of British post war and contemporary string quartets.


----------



## Guest

The Arditti Quartet is probably the most accomplished string quartet in the world.


----------



## Barbebleu

I am thinking about buying this.









Would this be a reasonable introduction to these works? I assume that there are probably other better versions scattered over several sources but this seemed good way to get to know the works before splashing out on those other versions. I've listened to some of them on YouTube and liked enough of what I heard to dip my toe in the water, so to speak, of the 2nd Viennese School. All sensible advice will be carefully considered.


----------



## TurnaboutVox

I know most of the LaSalle recordings in this box (not all the Zemlinsky quartets). They're good, and have at times been very well received by critics who know a lot more than I do. You certainly won't go wrong with them. However, the recordings are from 1968 and in my opinion do not compare to some of the newer accounts on that score.

I prefer other ensembles' interpretations of all of these quartets. The Emerson Quartet (Webern) and the more lyrical Quatuor Diotima (Berg, Schoenberg and Webern) certainly offer viable alternatives that I will vouch for, as do the Escher Quartet on Naxos for Zemlinsky. 

I haven't heard these, but others, including members on TC, have praised, for instance, the Artis Quartet Wien, the Pražák Quartet, the Fred Sherry Quartet and the Schoenberg Quartet who have recorded some or all of these works more recently.


----------



## Barbebleu

TurnaboutVox said:


> I know most of the LaSalle recordings in this box (not all the Zemlinsky quartets). They're good, and have at times been very well received by critics who know a lot more than I do. You certainly won't go wrong with them. However, the recordings are from 1968 and in my opinion do not compare to some of the newer accounts on that score.
> 
> I prefer other ensembles' interpretations of all of these quartets. The Emerson Quartet (Webern) and the more lyrical Quatuor Diotima (Berg, Schoenberg and Webern) certainly offer viable alternatives that I will vouch for, as do the Escher Quartet on Naxos for Zemlinsky.
> 
> I haven't heard these, but others, including members on TC, have praised, for instance, the Artis Quartet Wien, the Pražák Quartet, the Fred Sherry Quartet and the Schoenberg Quartet who have recorded some or all of these works more recently.


Thanks for the advice. I took the plunge anyway. It was only £16 so can't go wrong really. I'm also working my way through this box.


----------



## fluteman

I'm a big fan of the LaSalle Quartet, especially their Zemlinsky. I don't think you'll be disappointed with this set.


----------



## Mahlerian

I agree with what's been said above. The LaSalle Quartet's versions of the works are fine as a starting point, and they've survived thus far in the catalog for good reason, but I feel that the New Vienna Quartet (a bit rougher around the edges) and the very recent Quatuor Diotima (much smoother) are more expressive accounts of the Schoenberg quartet cycle, at the least. I also find the Emersons playing Webern and the Alban Berg Quartet's Lyric Suite essential.


----------



## TurnaboutVox

Barbebleu said:


> Thanks for the advice. I took the plunge anyway. It was only £16 so can't go wrong really.


I thought you might! Well, I don't think you'll be disappointed - I wasn't when I bought the LP set, which didn't have the Zemlinsky quartets, back in 1985 or so. It was a huge investment for a poor student to make!

I hope you enjoy exploring it, though I agree with Mahlerian's comments above..


----------



## Barbebleu

TurnaboutVox said:


> I thought you might! Well, I don't think you'll be disappointed - I wasn't when I bought the LP set, which didn't have the Zemlinsky quartets, back in 1985 or so. It was a huge investment for a poor student to make!
> 
> I hope you enjoy exploring it, though I agree with Mahlerian's comments above..


Knowing myself I'll probably get the Quatuor Diotima and the Emersons at some point. I've got the Emerson SQ doing the Bartok Qurtets which I really liked.


----------



## Vaneyes

Royal SQ (Hyperion): Lutoslawski, Penderecki; Szymanski, Mykietyn.

The latest release is a most commendable effort by Hyperion. :tiphat:


----------



## Pugg

Did someone mention already : http://www.pavelhaasquartet.com/en/biografie/


----------

