Hi Everyone -- Here is some brief background on the string quartet, which we will be discussing tomorrow. The Kronos Quartet as a group raise a fascinating issue of how one of the most high brow ensembles in the world of music can turn into one of the hippest.

THE STRING QUARTET

Here is some historial background to the emphatically modern string quartet we will be hearing Saturday evening in the Kronos Quartet.

The most prestigious genre of private music in Viennese Classicism was the string quartet. A string quartet is an ensemble of two violins, a viola, and a cello. The term string quartet is also used to describe a work written for such ensembles. Like the symphony, the string quartet emerged with the rise of the Classical style. The Baroque trio sonata foreshadowed the string quartet, especially in its use of two treble instruments of the same range (the violins). But the string quartet drew on other antecedents as well, including the serenade and the divertimento, lighter genres halfway between the Baroque Suite and the four-movement Classical symphony.

Why four instruments rather than, for example, three or five? One reason may be that the most complex Classical harmonies, known as seventh chords, contain four pitches. Moreover, the combination of two violins, viola, and cello provides the full range of a Classical orchestra (except for the double basses, which generally reinforce the cellos an octave below).

And why strings rather than woodwinds or some other grouping? This is easier to answer. Strings are ideally suited to the expressive, intimate, balanced nature of chamber music. Although certain wind and brass instruments had recently migrated from the outdoors into the salon, it would be some time before they would approach the violin, viola, or cello in flexibility.

The Classical string quartet is generally built on the same four-movement plan as the symphony: a fast opening sonata-form movement, a slow movement, a minuet, and a quick finale.

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THE KRONOS QUARTET

Few groups so successfully bridged the gap between classical and popular music as the Kronos Quartet; expanding the parameters of their repertoire to include compositions from rock, jazz and world music, the New York-based artists recorded a body of work virtually unparalleled in its dedication to innovation and range of expression. Comprised of David Harrington on first violin, John Sherba on second violin, Hank Dutt on viola and Joan Jeanrenaud on cello, the Kronos Quartet was formed in San Francisco in 1973; though all four members were classically trained, they quickly dispensed with the rigid formalities of their craft, performing their chamber music with all of the impassioned energy commonly associated with rock -- even their casual dress flew in the face of the classical establishment.

Although Kronos began recording during the late 1970s, they began attracting widespread notice during the middle of the following decade as a result of recordings like 1984's Monk Suite (a collection of classical performances of compositions by Thelonious Monk and Duke Ellington) and their 1986 eponymous Nonesuch label debut, which raised many eyebrows via its string-quartet cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze." In the years to follow the quartet remained uniquely eclectic and unpredictable, commissioning pieces from modern composers like Philip Glass and John Zorn, performing the works of tango innovator Astor Piazzolla and free-jazz visionary Ornette Coleman, and exploring world music (1992's Pieces of Africa exclusively featured music native to the African continent), remaining several paces ahead of their contemporaries at all times. Joan Jeanrenaud left the Kronos Quartet in 1999; she was replaced by cellist Jennifer Culp. -- Jason Ankeny, All-Music Guide

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KRONOS QUARTET

David Harrington (violin)
John Sherba (violin)
Hank Dutt (viola)
Jennifer Culp (cello)

Since its inception in 1973, the Kronos Quartet has emerged as a leading voice for New York. Combining a unique musical vision with a fearless dedication to experimentation, Kronos has assembled a body of work unparalleled in its range and scope of expression, and in the process, has captured the attention of audiences world-wide.

The Quartet's extensive repertoire ranges from Shostakovich, Webern, Bartok and Ives to Astor Piazzolla, John Cage, Raymond Scott and Howlin' Wolf. In addition to working closely with modern masters such as Terry Riley, John Zorn, and Henryk Gorecki, Kronos commissions new works from today's most innovative composers from around the world, extending its reach as far as Zimbabwe, Poland, Australia, Japan, Argentina and Azerbaijan. 

The Quartet is currently working with many composers, including Franghiz Ali-Zadeh, Foday Musa Suso, Scott Johnson, Sofia Gubaidulina, Steven Mackey, John Oswald, Don Byron, Tan Dun, Peter Sculthorpe, Lois V.Vierk, Philip Glass and Dmitri Yanov-Yanovsky. 

Kronos performs annually in many cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York, and festivals throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan, Mexico, South America, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Australia. Recent tours have included appearances at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Kennedy Center, Montreux Jazz Festival, Carnegie Hall, Sidney Opera House, Tanglewood, London's Royal Festival Hall, La Scala, Theatre de la Ville in Paris and Chicago's Orchestra Hall.

The Quartet records exclusively for Nonesuch Records, and the catalogue includes Kronos Quartet Performs Philip Glass (1995), Night Prayers (1994), Bob Ostertag's All The Rage (1993), At The Grave of Richard Wagner (1993), Morton Feldman's Piano and String Quartet (1993), Henryk Mikolaj Gorecki's String Quartet n. 1 and 2 (1993), "Pieces of Africa" (1992), Henryk Mikolaj Gorecki's "Already It Is Dusk" (1991), Astor Piazzolla's Five Tango Sensations(1991), Kevin Volans' Hunting: Gathering (1991), Witold Lutoslawsky's String Quartet (1991), Black Angels (1990), which received a Grammy Nomination for the Best Chamber Music Performance, Salome Dances for Peace (1989), which received a Grammy Nomination for Best Contemporary Composition, Different Trains (1989), which received a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Composition, Winter Was Hard (1988), White Man Sleeps (1987), which received a Grammy Nomination for Best Chamber Music Performance, and Kronos