Ying Quartet

“The ensemble replicated the sounds of water.” – The New York Times

The Grammy Award-winning Ying Quartet occupies a position of unique prominence in the classicalmusic world, combining brilliantly communicative performances with a fearlessly imaginative view ofchamber music in today's world. Now in its third decade, theQuartet has established itself as anensemble of the highest musical qualifications. The Quartet’s performances regularly take place inmany of the world's most important concert halls; at the same time, the Ying’s belief that concertmusic can also be ameaningful part of everyday life has drawn the foursome to perform in settingsas diverse as the workplace, schools, juvenile prisons, and the White House.

The Ying Quartet first came to professional prominence in the early 1990s as the first recipient ofanNEA Rural Residence Grant which led to it serving as the resident quartet of Jesup, Iowa, a farm townof 2,000 people. Playing before audiences of six to six hundred in homes, schools, churches, andbanks, the Quartet had its first opportunities to usemusic and creative endeavor to help buildcommunity and authentic human connection. The Quartet considers its time in Jesup the foundationof its present musical life and goals.

The Quartet’s recent seasons have featured performances in major halls throughout the worldincluding in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and multiple tours throughoutChina. The Ying also collaborates regularly with jazz pianist Billy Childs, bassist Xavier Foley, and PUSHPhysical Theatre.

The Ying's ongoing LifeMusic commissioning project, created in response to its commitment toexpanding the rich string quartet repertoire, has already achieved an impressive history. Supportedby the Institute for American Music, the Ying Quartet commissions both established and emergingcomposers to create music that reflects contemporary American life.

Recent works include Billy Childs’ Awakening; Lera Auerbach’s Sylvia’s Diary; Lowell Liebermann’s String Quartet No. 3, To the Victims of War; Sebastian Currier’s Next Atlantis; and John Novacek’s Three Rags for String Quartet. In August 2016, the Ying Quartet released a new Schumann/Beethoven recording on Sono Luminus with renowned cellist Zuill Bailey, and in that season the fivetoured with the Schumann Cello Concertotranscribed for cello and string quartet along withBeethoven’s “Kreutzer Sonata,” also reimagined for cello quintet.

The Ying Quartet's numerous other recordings reflect many of the group's wide-ranging musicalinterests and have generated consistent, enthusiastic acclaim. The group’s CD “American Anthem”(Sono Luminus), heralding the music of Randall Thompson, Samuel Barber, and Howard Hanson, wasreleased in 2013 to rave reviews; its 2007 Telarc release of the three Tchaikovsky Quartets and the Souvenirde Florence(with James Dunham and Paul Katz) was nominated for a Grammy Award in theBest Chamber Music Performance category.

As longtime quartet-in-residence at the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, theYing Quartet teaches in the string department and leads a rigorous, sequentially designed chambermusic program. One cornerstone of chamber music activity atEastman is the noted “Music for All”program, in which all students curate opportunities to perform in community settings beyond theconcert hall. The Quartet is also the ensemble-in-residence at the Bowdoin International MusicFestival, and from 2001-2008, the members of the Ying Quartet were the Blodgett Artists-in-Residence at Harvard University.