Zehetmair Quartet

Founded in 1994, the Zehetmair Quartet quickly gained international prominence and critical acclaim for its vigorous, imaginative, and meticulously wrought performances of the string quartet repertoire. Calling the group "refreshingly iconoclastic," critic Harris Goldsmith of the American Record Guide particularly praised the interpretation of Robert Schumann's String Quartet, Op. 41/3, admiring the ensemble's mastery of the "many aspects of this impassioned piece of German Romanticism."?
While the Zehetmair Quartet's innovative spirit is undeniable, this, nevertheless, is a first violinist-dominated ensemble, much of its energy flowing from Thomas Zehetmair's strong artistic personality and immense enthusiasm. However, just like Zehetmair, the three other members -- second violinist Matthias Metzger, violist Ruth Killius, and cellist Ursula Smith, who took the place of former members Rosie Biss and Daniel Haefliger -- perform regularly as soloists. Often playing from memory, the ensemble successfully integrates aspects of solo playing, which introduce individual artistic insights, into a exceptionally convincing string quartet idiom. The group's immensely successful first concert tour, in 1998, immediately led to invitations from the United States and Japan. The Zehetmair Quartet uses its annual European tour to perform, in addition to the standard repertoire, important works by lesser-known composers such as Karl Hartmann and Sándor Veress. The quartet's awards include the 2003 Record of the Year Award, given by Gramophone, for the performance of Schumann's quartets; the Quarterly Prize from the Deutsche Schallplatenkritik for the 2000 recording of Bartók's and Hartmann's quartets; the Diapason d'Or prize; and the Belgian Klara Preis. The Zehetmair Quartet undertook a U.S. tour in 2005.