This comprehensive set marks the first 25 years of the ever-evolving Kronos Quartet. This retrospective, decided the New York Times, "does an impressive job of documenting the group's history while also doing justice to a wide range of musical styles of the last quarter of the 20th century."
Culminating a nearly yearlong international celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Kronos Quartet in 1998, Nonesuch Records released a 10-CD box set retrospective in October entitled 25 Years. The collection includes a rich sampling of recordings of some of the new classics of contemporary music along with several new recordings of works by some of the most notable composers of this century.
David Harrington formed Kronos Quartet in 1973 after hearing a performance of George Crumb’s Black Angels on the radio. That piece, written by Crumb in 1970 for amplified strings and percussion and subsequently staged by Kronos, radically changed the conception of the traditional string quartet and spurred the members of the quartet to seek out adventurous repertoire from living composers around the globe.
At the time of their 25-years anniversary in 1998, the group had performed more than 600 works and has commissioned 400 new works by composers spanning six continents and four generations. The 25 Years collection demonstrates the role that the Kronos Quartet has played in literally creating a repertoire. The string quartets of Górecki, Glass and Schnittke, Reich’s Different Trains, Feldman’s Quintet, and Crumb’s Black Angels are just a handful of works that have formed an integral part of the contemporary music repertoire.
The 10-CD box set 25 Years also includes world premiere recordings of works by Ken Benshoof (Traveling Music, Song of Twenty Shadows) and P.Q. Phan (Tragedy at the Opera), as well as new recordings of works by Astor Piazzolla (Four, for Tango), Terry Riley (G Song, Cadenza on the Night Plain), Arvo Pärt (Summa, Missa Syllabica) and Peter Sculthorpe (Quartets Nos. 8 and 11, From Ubirr).
A comprehensive illustrated booklet accompanies the box set with liner notes by K. Robert Schwarz, Alan Rich, and Nonesuch Records President Robert Hurwitz.
Kronos Quartet signed an exclusive recording agreement with Nonesuch Records in 1985.
MUSICIANS
Kronos Quartet:
David Harrington, violin
John Sherba, violin
Hank Dutt, viola
Joan Jeanrenaud, cello
PRODUCTION CREDITS
Produced by Judith Sherman except where otherwise noted
Mastered by Judith Sherman and David Harrington at SoundByte Productions, New York, NY
Executive Producer: Robert Hurwitz
Disc One
1: Recorded August 1995 (Toot Nipple) and August 1996; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineers: John Klepko, Chris Haynes (Toot Nipple); Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis; Electronic tapes prepared by Mark Grey
2: Produced by Judith Sherman and the Kronos Quartet; Recorded November 1987 at Methuen Memorial Music Hall, Methuen, Mass.; Engineer: John Newton; Originally mastered by Robert C. Ludwig
3: Recorded August 1993; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Tom Luekens; Editing: Jonathan Schultz, Judith Sherman, Jeanne Velonis
4: Recorded July 1997; Engineer: Bob Levy; Editing Assistants: Jeanne Velonis, Jonathan Schultz
5: Recorded August 1993; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: tom Luekens; Editing Assistant: Jonathan Schultz
Disc Two
1: Recorded August 1997; Engineers: Craig Silvey, Bob Levy; Assistant Engineer: Bob Levy; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
2: Recorded August 1995; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Chris Haynes; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
3: Recorded November 1989 at Power Station, New York, N.Y.; Engineers: Judith Sherman, Rob Eaton, Dave O’Donnell, Dan Gellert
4: Recorded July 1997; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Bob Levy; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
Disc Three
Produced by Judith Sherman and the Kronos Quartet
Recorded November 1991
Engineers: Bob Edwards, Judith Sherman
Assistant Engineer: Craig Silvey
Disc Four
Produced by Judith Sherman, Kurt Munkacsi, and Philip Glass
Recorded August 1993
Engineer: Craig Silvey
Assistant Engineer: Tom Luekens
Edited by Judith Sherman
Disc Five
1: Recorded January 1996; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Chris Haynes; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
2: Produced by Judith Sherman and the Kronos Quartet; Recorded January 1994 at Mechanics Hall, Worcester, Mass.; Engineers: Joseph Chilorio, Judith Sherman; Additional recording January 1994 at Skywalker Sound, Nicasio, Calif.; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineers: Mark Donahue, Chris Haynes; Mixed March 1994 at MasterSound, Astoria, N.Y.; Mix Engineer: Ben Rizzi; Assistant Engineer: David Merrill
3: Recorded August 1993; Engineers: Judith Sherman, Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Tom Luekens
Disc Six
1: Recorded August 1992; Engineers: Bob Edwards, Judith Sherman; Assistant Engineer: Craig Silvey
2: Recorded July 1990; Engineer: Bob Edwards
Disc Seven
1: Recorded August-September 1988 at Russian Hill Recording, San Francisco, Calif.; Engineer: Les Brockman; Assistant Engineer: Michael Ahearn; Mixing Engineer: Rob Eaton; Assistant Mixing Engineer: Ben Fowler; Originally mastered by Robert C. Ludwig
2: Produced by Judith Sherman and the Kronos Quartet; Recorded June 1989; Engineers: Judith Sherman, Juhani Liimatainen, Tony Eckert; Mixing Engineers: Judith Sherman, Bob Edwards
Disc Eight
1: Recorded July-August 1997; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Bob Levy; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
2: Recorded July 1997; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Bob Levy; Editing Assistant: Tom Luekens
3: Recorded August 1988; Engineer: John Newton; Originally mastered by Robert C. Ludwig
Disc Nine
1: Recorded August 1994; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Steve Limonoff
2: Recorded August 1996; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: John Klepko; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
3: Produced by Judith Sherman and the Kronos Quartet; Recorded and mixed May 1997; Engineer and Mixer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineers: Bob Levy, Judy Kirschner; Mix Assistant: Bob Levy; Editing: Tom Luekens, Judith Sherman, Jeanne Velonis
Disc Ten
1: Recorded August 1992; Engineer: Bob Edwards; Assistant Engineer: Craig Silvey
2: Recorded August 1994; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: John Klepko; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
3: Recorded February 1995 at the American Academy of Arts and Letter, New York, N.Y.; Engineer: Paul Zinman, SoundByte Productions; Assistant Engineer: His-Ling Chang; Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis; Additional mixing by John Kilgore at Masque Sound, New York, N.Y.
4: Recorded July 1997; Engineer: Craig Silvey; Assistant Engineer: Bob Levy; Editing Assistant: Tom Luekens
5: Recorded June 1989; Engineer: Bob Edwards; Assistant Engineer: Tony Eckert
Art direction and design by Frank Olinsky
Outside box cover by Marion Ettlinger (San Francisco, CA, 1998)
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MUSICIANS
Kronos Quartet:
David Harrington, violin
John Sherba, violin
Hank Dutt, viola
Joan Jeanrenaud, cello
