Fitzwilliam Quartet

The Fitzwilliam Quartet or Fitzwilliam String Quartet (FSQ) is a British string quartet founded in 1968 by four Cambridge undergraduates. The quartet is one of the longest-established chamber ensembles in the world and is particularly noted for its close association with the composer Dmitri Shostakovich, who entrusted them with the Western premières of his last three string quartets. The FSQ was the first group outside the Soviet Union to perform and record all fifteen of Shostakovich's string quartets, a cycle that earned them international acclaim and a long-term recording contract with Decca. The quartet's Shostakovich recordings were highly decorated, winning the first-ever Gramophone Award for Chamber Music in 1977 and being included in Gramophone magazine's "100 Greatest-ever Recordings" in 2005. The composer himself held the quartet in high regard, reportedly telling Benjamin Britten that the Fitzwilliam were his "preferred performers of my quartets". While maintaining its pre-eminence in the interpretation of Shostakovich's works, the FSQ performs a diverse repertoire ranging from the late 17th century to the present day, including a commitment to new music that has resulted in the addition of over 60 new works to the repertoire. The quartet is also known for its work with historical instrument setups, including recording Schubert and Beethoven on gut strings.