Escher drawing music.

The other day my friend and I stopped by our dear friend Andrew's apartment, nestled in an obscure neighborhood on the Upper West Side. Andrew and my friend both studied with the same cello teacher in college, but now that Andrew's graduated, he's had more time to focus on making music with a string quartet he and some friends formed while at school. I've heard them in performance playing Richard Danielpour's fifth string quartet and was very impressed; however that was two years ago, before they were picked up by a prestigious management company and given a spot at Lincoln Center's Chamber Music Society.

With a bit of coaxing (but not too much), Andrew let Alice and me view a performance of the Mendelssohn Quartet in A minor that they had done in Aspen, CO a year ago. Like their mentors, the Emerson String Quartet, these young musicians stand when they perform. I forgot to ask Andrew how it felt for him to be the only seated musician, but he seemed supportive of the idea generally.

Immediately upon hearing them one forgot whether they were sitting, standing, or running up and down the goddamn stage wearing headdresses. Their sound is gorgeous. I've known all four musicians from school; they're all nice people and they were all certainly the cream of the crop at their chosen instruments. They've done something that few graduates get the chance to do, however, and that's grow into true musicians by doing something they love.

They are easily one of the top young string quartets out there and I have no doubt that they'll make a strong mark in string quartet performance history. Adam (first violin) and Wu Jie (second violin), have shared some of the same violin teachers; this has perhaps assisted in their uncanny ability to balance each other and act as simply two violinists, without any hierarchy. It also doesn't hurt that they both have beautiful, lush tones and the technical mastery of their instruments to do whatever they damn well pleased. Pierre (viola) is a very nice guy, extremely intellectual, and an impressive violist. Sitting next to him in orchestras, even if it's a particularly lack-luster orchestra, is always a pleasure. He not only makes the viola part audible, but his musical ideas, sound, and phrasing are all to be lauded. Andrew (cello) is a licensed massage therapist in the state of California, and that's just what he does to the cello: with a lustful vibrato and graceful swoops, he almost massages the music out of his own cello.

If you want to see the future of classical music, look no further than the Escher String Quartet. I personally am not only impressed by their work but proud that my colleagues have already achieved this level of musicianship. You can visit them on their official website or just even just Google them. These next concert seasons are sure to be busy for them, so look for some of their upcoming performances in the NYC and metropolitan areas.