Embark on an exquisite musical journey with the Brentano String Quartet as they bring to life the timeless works of Haydn and Brahms, and present new compositions at prestigious venues such as Yale University, Carnegie Hall, and Caramoor. Renowned for their passionate and uninhibited interpretations, the Quartet captivates audiences with their luxurious sound and compelling performances. Experience their mastery as they explore 'startling musical revelations,' offering a unique blend of classical mastery and contemporary innovation.

Brentano String Quartet: A Journey Through Time and Sound

Join the Brentano String Quartet as they embark on a captivating three-event journey through the world of string quartets. From unearthing musical revelations at Yale University to performing the complete Haydn Op. 33 at Carnegie Hall, and introducing a new masterpiece at Caramoor, the quartet offers a rich tapestry of classical and contemporary works. This article delves into the intricacies of each performance, the ensemble's renowned interpretations, and the overarching cultural significance of their music-making.

Brentano String Quartet: A Journey Through Timeless String Music

Embark on a vibrant journey through the annals of classical music with the Brentano String Quartet. Known for their passionate performances and innovative interpretations, the ensemble will delight audiences across three captivating events. From Yale in New Haven to the iconic Carnegie Hall in New York City, and finally to the scenic Caramoor in Katonah, NY, join them as they pay homage to Haydn and Brahms while also introducing a contemporary masterpiece by Lei Liang. Mark your calendars for an unforgettable musical experience that promises to resonate long after the final note.

Brentano String Quartet: A Harmonious Journey Through Time and Sound

The Brentano String Quartet, praised for their 'wonderful, selfless music-making,' is set to captivate audiences with a series of concerts across prestigious venues. From the timeless elegance of Haydn and Brahms to the innovative compositions by Lei Liang, the quartet promises an unforgettable musical experience. With performances at Caramoor, Dresden, Union College, and Philadelphia, audiences will revel in the quartet's masterful interpretations and vibrant ensemble playing.

The Brentano String Quartet: A Journey Through Timeless Masterworks

The Brentano Quartet invites you on an enthralling musical journey across the globe and through centuries of classical masterpieces, promising a series of performances that are as profound as they are engaging. From Schubert's 'Trout Quintet' in Salt Lake City to an exploration of Haydn's quartets in New York, the quartet embarks on a rich musical odyssey that unites the timeless works of Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, and modern composer Lei Liang. Each event glistens with the artistry of renowned musicians and promises an unforgettable experience for classical music aficionados.

Brentano Quartet: A Melodic Journey Through Time and Genius

The DACAMERA audience favorites perform a characteristically intriguing and varied program. Haydn’s inventive classical works are daringly contrasted with 20th and 21st century quartets, including a recent work by award-winning composer/pianist Timo Andres.

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Brentano String Quartet

The Menil Collection

Bridging past and present, the Brentano Quartet performs works by Haydn and Beethoven alongside Machine, Learning by Timo Andres ’07BA ’09MM.

Yale University

The Brentano String Quartet, whose name refers to Beethoven’s »immortal beloved« Antonie Brentano, is known for its brilliant ensemble playing, technical perfection and remarkable vibrancy. In 2025, the American quartet, which looks back on several acclaimed performances at the Dresdner Musikfestspiele, returns with a work commissioned from Lei Liang, a composer born in China, but now living in the USA and considered one of the most astonishing voices in New Music.

Palais im Großen Garten

The critically acclaimed Brentano String Quartet returns to the Chamber Music Society of Salt Lake City to perform Schubert’s “Trout Quintet” with virtuoso pianist Jonathan Biss and award-winning Principal Bass of the Philadelphia Orchestra Joseph Conyers. This final concert of the Society’s 58th season is not to be missed!

Brentano Quartet

University of Utah

Acclaimed for “wonderful, selfless music-making” (The Times, London), the virtuosic Brentano Quartet graces the stage at Caramoor once again. Revel in the timeless elegance of Haydn and Brahms alongside the debut of a masterpiece by the esteemed Chinese American composer, Lei Liang, in honor of his teacher Chou Wen-chung. Since its inception in 1992, the Brentano String Quartet has performed worldwide and achieved critical acclaim for its passionate, uninhibited interpretations and luxuriously warm sound that promise an afternoon of musical enchantment.

The Rosen House at Caramoor

With a career spanning over three decades, the Brentano Quartet has appeared throughout the world to popular and critical acclaim. The New York Times extols its “luxuriously warm sound [and] yearning lyricism; and the Times (London) hails their “wonderful, selfless music-making.” They bring their “Evocations of Home” program to San Diego—which offers a set of perspectives on the idea of home, culturally, intellectually, emotionally, and geographically. The evening program prominently features a new work by UC San Diego Professor Lei Liang, alongside movements byDvorak, Schubert, Bartok and Monteverdi that evoke a sense of place, identity and heritage.

University of California San Diego

The “magnificent” Brentano String Quartet (London’s The Times) performs in Zankel Hall Center Stage—an intimate, in-the-round setting in which audiences encircle the artists. For the occasion, the ensemble treats listeners to Haydn’s complete Op. 33 string quartets—the first set of works contemporaneously titled “string quartets” by the art form’s definitive composer. With his earlier compositions for four string musicians (including the foundational Op. 20), Haydn’s transformational influence on quartet music was already unmatched. When this immense set of music was unveiled to the world on Christmas Day 1781, it proved to be a true culmination of his efforts, showcasing the string quartet as a vibrant, richly varied, and virtuosic form of music that’s as riveting today as ever.

Carnegie Hall

The School’s faculty quartet-in-residence unearths “startling musical revelations” (The Guardian, London).

A performance by the School’s faculty quartet-in-residence, whose music-making The Independent (London) has described as “passionate, uninhibited and spell-binding.”

Programs and artists are subject to change without notice. The Norfolk Chamber Music Festival follows all health and safety protocols required by Yale University.

Yale School of Music

Brentano Quartet and Rieko Aizawa

Morning Concert

Libbey Park

Opening Concert

Libbey Park 

Since the group’s inception in 1992, the Brentano String Quartet has appeared around the world to popular and critical acclaim. “Passionate, uninhibited and spellbinding,” raves the London Independent; The New York Times extols the Quartet’s “luxuriously warm sound [and] yearning lyricism.”

Digital Concert: Brentano String Quartet

“My best advice is never to pass up an opportunity to hear the Brentano String Quartet,” raves The Strad, citing the group’s intensity, commitment, and intelligent interpretations.

New England Conservatory

The Brentano String Quartet visits Stanford University to perform an afertnoon recital and masterclass in Campbell Recital Hall

Braun Music Center

Since its inception in 1992, the Brentano String Quartet, composed of Serena Canin and Mark Steinberg (violin); Misha Amory (viola); and Nina Lee (cello), has appeared throughout the world to popular and critical acclaim. They were promptly recipients of several awards early in their career, including the first Cleveland Quartet Award and the Naumberg Chamber Music Award, and have since performed across five continents in the world’s most prestigious venues and festivals. The Brentano has been the quartet-in-residence at the Yale School of Music since 2014, following 15 years in residence at Princeton University. The Quartet has also launched numerous projects over the years that reimagine the standard concert program. For their Tippet Rise debut, the group will perform a program including works by contemporary Scottish composer James Macmillan, Henry Purcell, Beethoven, and Bach’s masterpiece Art of Fugue, which the quartet has examined at several points throughout their career.

Tippet Rise Art Center

SBC 2023 Festival Concert 2

Lincoln Theater Damariscotta

This concert is a favorite for all ages, and introduces children and adults to great chamber music in engaging and entertaining ways. Come sing, clap and enjoy a musical morning with our wonderful musicians. Hosted by Mark Mandarano.

Family Concert with the Brentano String Quartet 2023

Central Lincoln County YMCA

The Brentano String Quartet gives a lecture/demonstration focused on Fanny Mendelssohn, Felix’s talented sister, at the Frances Perkins Homestead in Newcastle.

“Fanny & Fannie” Lecture/Demo on Fanny Mendelssohn with the Brentano String Quartet

Frances Perkins Center

The New York Times praised their “luxuriously warm sound [and] yearning lyricism;” and the Philadelphia Inquirer observed their “seemingly infallible instincts for finding the center of gravity in every phrase and musical gesture.” Hear the Brentano Quartet joined by cellist Wilhelmina Smith in Steven Mackey’s quintet Joy Rhythm Study—a co-commission with the AMFS. In the composer’s words, “I began by exploring some rhythmic curiosities emerging from the confrontation/combination of seven in the time of two (or four) and then became preoccupied with the idea of transforming the resultant off-kilter experiments, hobbled oddities and precarious textures into something joyful through the course of the piece. The Brentano will also play one of Beethoven’s late quartets. At their British debut, the London Independent review raved, calling it “as momentous a performance of Beethoven’s Op. 130 Quartet as I’ve ever heard live… “Passionate, uninhibited and spellbinding.” The quartet’s affinity for Beethoven is reflected in its name, taken from Antoine Brentano, whom many scholars believe was the composer’s “Immortal Beloved.

Recital: Brentano Quartet with Wilhelmina Smith cello

Aspen Meadows Resort

Hair-raising....an ensemble of exceptional insight and communicative gifts.

Brentano Quartet
with Thomas Sauer, piano

Kleinhans Music Hall

Revered American soprano Dawn Upshaw and the unparalleled Brentano String Quartet come together for a new performance project. Sparked by the famous “Dido’s Lament” from Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Dido Reimagined focuses on “the emotional journey of a powerful woman who has, in spite of her strength of character, been broken by love. Through the lens of the seasons, Dido discovers, confronts, and ultimately makes peace with her fate and with her place in the world” (Composer Melinda Wagner).

Dawn Upshaw | Soprano & Brentano String Quartet

War Memorial and Performing Arts Center

One of our favorite ensembles and Yale’s quartet-in-residence returns for a special extended program traversing one of Haydn’s seminal sets of quartets. The Brentano’s signature elegance and refined musicianship will illuminate the composer’s genius in the six masterworks.

Brentano Quartet Union College

Union College

Internationally renowned violist Hsin-Yun Huang’s “superb artistry” (Chicago Tribune) lights up the stage as she joins the School’s quartet-in-residence in a program of Mozart and Bartók chamber music.

Brentano String Quartet with Hsin-Yun Huang, viola

In this special two-part concert, the “passionate, uninhibited, and spellbinding” (London Independent) Brentano Quartet and master violist Hsin-Yun Huang illuminate the complete string quintets of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In these six remarkable works, Mozart achieves a tour de force of classical perfection, from the first quintet—in which one senses a brilliant young composer just starting to test his wings—to the later works, in which he reaches his most breathtaking heights of inspiration.

Brentano String Quartet

Jan 18, 2026

Brentano Quartet Union College

Jan 27, 2026

Brentano String Quartet with Hsin-Yun Huang, viola

May 10, 2026

Brentano Quartet Hsin-Yun Huang

Dec 2, 2025

Brentano String Quartet

Sep 23, 2025

Brentano String Quartet

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