"The proof that the Fine Arts Quartet may be consistently rated as the best of its kind was evident Friday evening at the first of the master concert series."
(Saarbrucker Zeitung)
Graz
"The Fine Arts Quartet is regarded as an American institution...Superior virtuosity enhances carefully thought out, clear, well structured interpretations."
(Kleine Zeitung, Graz, Austria)
Kitchener
"MAGICAL MOZART (headline)...This Quartet is made up of four extraordinary individuals. The level of finesse, joined with impeccable taste, intelligence, diligence and intimate knowledge of their repertory results in an ensemble sound of incredible variety and control ... This concert is among the half-dozen finest musical events within memory."
(Kitchener-Waterloo Record)
Milwaukee
"The loyal fans on hand must have recognized that they had just experienced something extraordinary...Here, one was able to reach that rare state of consciousness in which awareness of the music eclipses that of the performance, where the performers' egos are subsumed into the composers' intention."
(Milwaukee Sentinel)
Ingolstadt
"The Fine Arts Quartet belongs to the quartet formations of the elite class with the richest traditions. The wonderful nobility of tone, the sensational sound transparency, and the terrific balance of the ensemble playing is all there...The fantastic tone quality of the Quartet fascinated the public in the Konzertverein."
(Donau Kurier, Ingolstadt)
Palma de Mallorca
"MEMORABLE SHOSTAKOVICH (headline)...The Fine Arts Quartet's performance was rapt, compelling and technically of the highest order. The Haydn and Dvorak quartets were each given immaculate performances. Apart from many incidental pleasures, the abiding impression was of the sympathy of the playing and the remarkable quality of the sound...Say what you like, and fiddle with your controls as you like, but no hi-fi equipment will ever reproduce instrumental richness and sonority of the kind we heard in the Santa Domingo Cloisters on Wednesday night."
(Daily Bulletin, Palma de Mallorca)
Indianapolis
"The players' grasp of...style seemed uncanny...The brittle energy, the veiled but lurid colors, the clash of aggressive and introspective impulses - all these qualities were faithfully brought out by the Fine Arts Quartet."
(The Indianapolis Star)
"LA PERLE RARE"
"LA PERLE RARE" (headline)
(I.S., L'Express, 10 mars 1990)
San Francisco
"As fine a string quartet sound as can be heard from an American group today."
(Robert Commanday, San Francisco Chronicle, March 30, 1989)
London: Wigmore Hall
"It's rare to hear a string quartet of such manifest maturity and distinctness of personality."
(Max Loppert, Financial Times, March 10, 1989)
Los Angeles
"There was an emphasis on passion - a compelling, unexaggerated, often seemingly impetuous involvement in the music - throughout the program...The Fine Arts' combination of direct emotional connections and seemingly spontaneous--yet unanimous--interpretive inspirations make it a convincing Haydn proponent."
(John Henken, Los Angeles Times, October 10, 1988) Full review