Welcome the return to Aspen of one of the world’s great chamber ensembles in this entrancing program!

The Washington Post called them one of the “best string quartets before the public today.” The Los Angeles Times noted their remarkable ability to make “time stand still” and “assume the pose of excitingly aggressive rockers.”

Stravinsky’s charming Suite Italienne is a spinoff from his Pulcinella ballet. Using melodies from the baroque composer Pergolesi and others, he uses spiky harmonies and irregular rhythms to create a witty and delightful nod to the older musical style. The concert’s centerpiece is Beethoven’s final string quartet, the last major work he composed only a few months before his death. Smaller in scale, it contains one of the most sublime and poignant slow movements ever written. Topping things off will be original compositions and arrangements by the quartet itself.