MOSCOW STRING QUARTET
MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2008, 7:30 PM
BROOKES CHAPEL, SHORTER COLLEGE

Described by Alfred Schnittke as " an extraordinary ensemble that distinguishes itself with refined musical style, an unusually beautiful sound and palette of colors, and a tremendous artistic temperament",  the members of the Moscow String Quartet have earned a place among the most distinguished artists of our times. All graduates of the Moscow Conservatory and Gnessin Musical Institute ( Moscow), they were students of eminent professors, including Yuri Yankelevich, Genrihk Talalian of the Komitas String Quartet, and Valentin Berlinsky of the Borodin Quartet (with whom the quartet continued to study after graduation.)

The Moscow String Quartet gained international acclaim after winning the 1978 Leo Weiner International Quartet Competition in Budapest.  The next year, the quartet triumphed at the International Quartet competition in Evian, France.

Since then, the Moscow String Quartet has played to consistent critical acclaim in the major concert halls in Europe, including regular performances at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Salle Gaveau in Paris, Wigmore Hall in London, repeated appearances at the Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels, the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, and the Academy of Arts in Berlin. In addition, the quartet has appeared in many prestigious festivals, including the Paris and City of London Festivals, Berliner Festwochen, Stratford-upon-Avon and Cheltenham Festivals, Casals Festival in Prades, the Catalonia Festival in Spain, and the Newport Festival. In North America, the Moscow String Quartet has performed in New York City (Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Frick Collection), Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Detroit, Chicago, Dallas, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Seattle, Vancouver and Montreal. In 1996, the ensemble was invited by Madeleine Albright to perform at a White House Christmas Concert. From 1991-96, the quartet was in residence at the Lamont School of Music in Denver, and since 1997 has been in residence at the University of Colorado in Denver. Upcoming engagements include engagements at the Concertgebouw, the Philadelphia Chamber Music Soc., the Ottawa Chamber Music and the Casals Festival in San Juan.

The Moscow String Quartet has recorded for MCA, Fine Arts Records, Russian Disk, Channel Classics and Melodiya released four CDs including works by Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Schnittke, Mozart, Denisov, and Glinka.