Kronos—David Harrington, violin; John Sherba, violin; Hank Dutt, viola; and Jennifer Culp, cello—has been commissioning new work since its earliest days, and more than 450 pieces have been written or arranged for the group. The group's extensive repertoire ranges from Alban Berg, Alfred Schnittke, George Crumb and Sofia Gubaidulina, to Hildegard von Bingen, Charles Mingus, Astor Piazzolla and Harry Partch. In addition to ongoing creative relationships with composers such as Terry Riley(from whom NASA commissioned Sun Rings—an evening-length work that incorporates planetary sounds recorded in space), Franghiz Ali-Zadeh and Osvaldo Golijov, Kronos has collaborated with countless artists, including Dawn Upshaw, Wu Man, Cafe Tacuba, Zakir Hussain, Allen Ginsberg, Throat Singers of Tuva, Don Walser, Hamza El Din and Taraf de Haidouks.

Kronos performs annually in many cities and tours extensively, with more than 100 shows each year in concert halls, clubs and jazz festivals throughout the world. The group has won numerous international awards, including Musicians of the Year from Musical America in 2003. Kronos records exclusively for Nonesuch Records, and the group has been heard throughout the world on radio and television, in films and in live dance and theater performances. Of the nearly 30 records released on Nonesuch, nine have been Grammy nominees, and Berg's Lyric Suite with Dawn Upshaw is a recent Grammy winner.

April's Creators at Carnegie program features Kronos Quartet's Zankel Hall performance of Visual Music, which incorporated video, lighting and musical "sculpture," stretching the boundaries between music and visual art. Explains Harrington, "The entire concert was a journey and we hope that the viewers/listeners felt that they moved through a multitextured experience."

This latest installment in the Creators at Carnegie series highlights yet again the exciting collaboration that features Nonesuch Records' artists playing a key role in Carnegie Hall's new and adventurous programming. Visual aspects of the Kronos concert can be seen at npr.org.

PREVIOUS | NEXT: Youssou N'Dour