About

Altius Quartet is an ensemble determined to further the art of chamber music through performance, education, and outreach. Deriving their name from the Olympic motto Citius, Altius, Fortius (Latin for "Faster, Higher, Stronger"), Altius strives to communicate their vision of conveying art to a more diverse audience and engaging directly with the community. Hailed as "rich" and "captivating" by the renowned music blog, "I Care If You Listen," the Altius Quartet is garnering an international reputation and enrapturing the hearts of audiences through their charisma and dynamism.

Altius has been awarded prizes at many internationally respected competitions including the 2016 Alice and Eleonore Schoenfeld International String Competition, the 2014 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, the 2014 Coltman Chamber Music Competition, and the 2013 Plowman Chamber Music Competition.

Formed in 2011 at Southern Methodist University Meadows School of the Arts, Altius currently holds the position as Fellowship String Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Colorado-Boulder, where they are mentored by the Takács Quartet. The quartet has an active performance schedule of engagements at music festivals, series, and universities throughout the United States. These include Carnegie Hall, Chamber Music Cincinnati, Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, and the Fayetteville Chamber Music Festival.

During their tenure at Southern Methodist University, Altius Quartet served as Ensemble- in-Residence working closely with Matt Albert, Emanuel Borok, and Andres Diaz. In addition, Altius has worked with and been guided by many of the foremost artists in chamber music including the Emerson String Quartet, Miró Quartet, Shanghai Quartet, and Kronos Quartet. In addition, Altius has collaborated with many celebrated artists including Håkan Rosengren, Anton Nel, Andres Diaz, Peter Nágy, and Geraldine Walther.

Altius Quartet is deeply committed to outreach, often performing concerts and teaching master classes in public schools and alternative venues including jazz clubs, bars, and cafes. In 2014, the quartet partnered with the Aspen Music Festival and School for annual educational outreach residencies. In addition, the quartet served as the 2014 Fellowship Quartet at the Music in the Mountains Conservatory in Durango, CO, where they had the opportunity to coach several young string quartets.

Music

String Quartets
Samuel Barber
String Quartet in B minor, Op. 11

Béla Bartók
String Quartet No. 1
String Quartet No. 4

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in G major, Op. 18, No. 6
String Quartet in F major, Op. 59, No. 1
String Quartet in E minor, Op. 59, No. 2
String Quartet in F minor, Op. 95
String Quartet in E-flat major, Op. 127
String Quartet in C# minor, Op. 131

William Bolcom
Three Rags

Johannes Brahms
String Quartet No. 1 in C minor, Op. 51

Antonin Dvorak
String Quartet No. 12 in F major, Op. 96 “American”

Joseph Haydn
String Quartet, Op. 20, No. 2
String Quartet, Op. 20, No. 5
String Quartet, Op. 50, No. 1
String Quartet, Op. 74, No. 1
String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 3
String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 4
String Quartet, Op. 77, No. 1

Michael Ippolito
String Quartet No. 4

Leos Janacek
String Quartet No. 2 “Intimate Letters”

György Ligeti
String Quartet No. 1 (Métamorphoses nocturnes)

David T. Little
1986 (2008)

Felix Mendelssohn
String Quartet in A minor, Op. 13
String Quartet in F minor, Op. 80

JP Merz
Through Fog

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Quartet in D minor, K. 421 (417 b)
Quartet in F major, K. 590

Krzysztof Penderecki
String Quartet No. 2

Sergei Prokofiev
String Quartet No. 2 in F major, Op. 92

Kevin Puts
Dark Vigil (1999)

Maurice Ravel
String Quartet in F major

Franz Schubert
String Quartet in C minor, D. 703 “Quartettsatz”
String Quartet in D minor, D. 810 “Death and the Maiden”

Dmitri Shostakovich
Quartet No. 7, Op. 108
Quartet No. 8, Op. 110
Quartet No. 9, Op. 117
Quartet No. 14, Op. 142

Jim Simmons
Against the Spirit of Madness (2014)

Joseph Twist
Dancing with Somebody

Huw Watkins
String Quartet

Anton Webern
6 Bagatelles, Op. 9
Langsamer Satz (1905)

Collaborations
Luigi Boccherini
Guitar Quintet No. 4 in D major, G. 448

Johannes Brahms
Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34
String Quintet No. 2 in G major, Op. 111
Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115

Ernst von Dohnanyi
Piano Quintet in C minor. Op. 1

Antonin Dvorak
Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major, Op. 81

Alexander Glazunov
Oriental Reverie for Clarinet and String Quartet

Felix Mendelssohn
String Quintet No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 87

W.A. Mozart
Clarinet Quintet in A major, K. 581

Sergei Prokofiev
Hebrew Themes for Clarinet and String Quartet

Arnold Schoenberg
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4

Robert Schumann
Piano Quintet in E-flat major, Op. 44

Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco
Quintet for Guitar and Strings, Op. 143

Carl Maria von Weber
Quintet for Clarinet and Strings, Op. 34

Concertos
Michael Abels
Delights and Dances for String Quartet and String Orchestra

Leonard Bernstein
“West Side Story” Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra, arr. by Randall Craig Fleischer

Joel Pucket
Short Stories (Concerto for String Quartet and Wind Symphony)

Videos

Audio

Past groupmuses (1)