“A Smorgasbord of Strings, Served With Youthful Vigor And Sense-Jolting Spices.”Anthony Tomasini, New York Times, 2004The Danish String Quartet was very quick to make a name for itself.  Shortly after their first appearance in 2002 they made a tour of the US where excellent reviews accelerated their already rapid race towards the stars. The latest recognition was the bestowal of the prestigious Carl Nielsen Award 2011 of 600,000 Dkr.The quartet opens with “Kunst der Fuge”, a work some musicologists think was never meant to be played, but merely to be enjoyed visually, intellectually. This understanding is extreme, but it is open to debate what instruments Bach had in mind when he wrote the music. Each part has its own staff as opposed to Bach’s works for organ or piano. This invites the idea of performing the work with an ensemble, which the Julliard, the Emerson, the Keller – and many other string quartets – have done over the years.On the programme we also find Ligeti’s screeching, perhaps ironic grimacing, drunkard’s dance and squeaky mousetraps in the crooked and theatrical String Quartet no. 1. The concert is rounded off with Beethoven’s amazing Fifth String Quartet.