The String Chees Incident

Over the last three decades, The String Cheese Incident have built a wildly devoted following on the strength of their kaleidoscopic musicality and commitment to leaving audiences ecstatically awestruck. Known for an electrifying and immersive live show that continually pushes into unexpected terrain, the Colorado-bred six-piece handles everything from bluegrass to dubstep to psychedelia with equal parts abandon and ingenuity—a feat that’s found them sharing stages with such wide-ranging artists as Lauryn Hill, Skrillex, James Brown, Billy Strings, Perry Farrell, Sheryl Crow, Zac Brown Band, and more.

Mozart’s string quintets represent "some of his most sophisticated musical thinking … wonderful music, exhilarating to hear” (from the liner notes by Eric Bromberger). With this three album set, the Alexander String Quartet and Paul Yarbrough complete their Mozart compendium.

The Doric String Quartet is firmly established as one of the leading quartets of its generation, receiving enthusiastic responses from audiences and critics around the globe. Following their acclaimed recordings of Mendelssohn’s string quartets, here the quartet is joined by leading violist Timothy Ridout for an album of Mendelssohn’s two string quintets. These were written at the beginning and end of his short but remarkable compositional life.

Described by the magazine Gramophone as ‘one of the finest young string quartets’, whose members are ‘musicians with fascinating things to say’, the Doric String Quartet has received rave responses from audiences and critics across the globe. The Quartet’s recent recording of Korngold’s string quartets was a 2010 Critics’ Choice in Gramophone.

Imagine that years after your favorite television series had ended (be it Seinfeld, The Sopranos, Stath Lets Flats, Twin Peaks or any other), you learned that additional episodes had been shot during the show’s best years and were about to be released in pristine quality. Would it matter that you had already watched dozens of episodes from the same season?

Some composers identify early on with a particular genre. A quick glance at a list of works by the Dane Hans Abrahamsen seems to indicate a very different attitude. The profusion of titles suggests a mind that picks up a form, engages with it for the duration of the work itself, and then moves on to something fresh. There has been one significant exception however- the string quartet.

The Dudok Quartet Amsterdam is forging a reputation as one of the most creative and versatile quartets of it's generation. The Guardian commented on their "lithe, lively sound and alert sense of structure and detail." The quartet play with unwound gut strings and a set of bespoke classical bows. This recording, their first for Rubicon, features the three Brahms String Quartets. They are joined by Finnish violist Lilli Maijala for the composer's String Quintet No.2.

Since it was formed in 2007, the Stradivari Quartet has built up an enviable international reputation for itself both through its concerts and recordings. Throughout all of this it has remained in close contact with its audiences, who often follow the players as a loyal and enthusiastic fan base. The Stradivari Quartet is undoubtedly one of the most interesting ensembles currently before the public. All four members are additionally engaged in other artistic activities.

It is often recalled how Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart influenced each other, but the interaction between Mozart and Haydn’s younger brother Michael (1737–1806) receives less attention. We owe Mozart’s two duos for violin and viola to a good turn he did for Michael, who could not complete a commission for six of these pieces. Mozart borrowed one of Michael’s symphonies when he was similarly unable to finish two of his own on time: he added a slow introduction and for a while the hybrid was known as his Symphony no. 37. We have only to hear the open- ing of Michael’s Requiem to realize where Mozart found the sound world for his own Requiem. And we owe Mozart’s string quintets – his finest body of chamber music – to the ex- ample of the younger Haydn, a fellow employee of the Prince Archbishop of Salzburg. …

Synthesis: The String Quartet Sessions is an epic new project by Grammy Award-winning producer Ryan Truesdell, which pairs 15 large ensemble jazz composers with a historic instrumentation through newly commissioned works for string quartet.