The Alexander String Quartet is a
string quartet based in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
. Formed in New York in 1981, the Alexander String Quartet has since 1989 been Ensemble in Residence of
San Francisco Performances San Francisco Performances is an organization which showcases chamber music, vocal and instrumental recitals, jazz and contemporary dance in the San Francisco Bay area. It was founded by Ruth Felt in 1979. The organization presents "internationally ...
and directors of the Morrison Chamber Music Center in the College of Liberal and Creative Arts at
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...
.
In 1982, the Alexander String Quartet was the first string quartet to win th
Concert Artists Guildcompetition.
In 1985, the Alexander String Quartet was the first American string quartet to win the
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
International String Quartet Competition (now the
Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition The triennial Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition (formerly The London International String Quartet Competition) has been held under the auspices of Wigmore Hall since July 2010. Embracing the entire string quartet tradition, it re ...
), winning both the audience prize and the jury's highest prize.
On April 7th, 2023, The Alexander String Quartet released an album entitled "British Invasion" with classical guitarist
William Kanengiser
William Kanengiser (born July 22, 1959) is a classical guitarist. He is one of the founding members of the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet (LAGQ).
Kanengiser was born in Orange, New Jersey.Maurice J. Summerfield: ''The Classical Guitar. Its Evolutio ...
.
Members
*Zakarias Grafilo, first violin
*Frederick Lifsitz, second violin
*David Samuel, viola
*Sandy Wilson, cello
—
*Paul Yarbrough, viola (emeritus, co-founder)
See also
*
List of string quartet ensembles
This is a list of recognized string quartets (i.e. groups of musical performers), current or past, in alphabetical order. It does not include the names of musical quartet compositions.
A
* Abramyan String Quartet
* Aeolian
* Aizuri Quartet
*Alban ...
References
External links
*Alexander String Quarte
official websiteArtists' page on BesenArtsArtists' page on San Francisco State University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander String Quartet
Musical groups established in 1981
American string quartets