Unquestionably one of the world's great string quartets, the St. Petersburg's rise to fame has included a Grammy nomination, "Best Record of the Month" honors in both Stereo Review and Gramophone, an opening night performance at "Mostly Mozart" at Lincoln Center, and hundreds of concerts on many of North America, Europe and Asia's most prestigious series and festivals. Hyperion is currently releasing the St. Petersburg's highly-anticipated cycle of all fifteen Shostakovich quartets; the first CDs in this cycle have received ecstatic reviews in the international press and were featured in the San Francisco Chronicle's article on the best chamber recordings of all time. Current releases on Delos include Quartets Nos.1 & 2 by Prokofiev, the premiere recording of Quartet No.1 by Georgian composer Zurab Nadarejshvili, and a Glazunov CD featuring Quartet No.5 and the Five Novelettes. In spring 2001, the Dorian label will launch a Russian Romantic series.
   The Quartet was formed in 1985 by graduates of the Leningrad Conservatory under the guidance of Vladimir Ovcharek, first violinist of the Taneyev String Quartet. Early in their musical career, the Quartet (then called "String Quartet of the Leningrad Conservatory Named after N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov") won 1st Prize at the All-Soviet Union String Quartet Competition. Almost without a moment's rest, they began preparing for the First International Shostakovich Competition for String Quartets, held in Leningrad in 1987. There the Quartet had considerable success, winning one of the prizes, the title of Laureate, and the Special Prize for the best performance of the required work, Shostakovich's Quartet No.7. Due to these successes and positive press reviews, the Quartet received several invitations to tour in the USSR and abroad. In 1987 the ensemble performed in concert halls throughout Russia, made its first recordings for radio and TV, and participated in various festivals.
   Having gone through this "baptism of fire" in their own country, the young quartet was given permission in 1989 to take the name "Leningrad String Quartet" and to travel to Tokyo to compete in the International Competition of Chamber Ensembles. There they won the Silver Medal and a Special Prize. In the summer of that same year, the Quartet visited the USA for the first time, as Artists-in-Residence at the Musicorda Festival and String Program in Massachusetts, which has become a regular part of their musical life.
   After a short rest in the mountains of New England, the Quartet began preparing for a new competition - the Vittorio Gui International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Florence, Italy. There they won not only the 1st Prize but both Special Prizes.
   In July 1991, the Quartet set about preparing for its greatest challenge yet - the International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Melbourne, Australia. There they had a brilliant success, returning home with the First Prize and the "Grand Prix Musica Viva." Intensive periods of international touring followed, with concerts in Germany, Italy, Spain, Estonia, Lithuania, Japan, North and South Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands and the USA.
   In August 1991, events took place in Russia which could not but influence the life of all Russians, including the ensemble. Their native city changed its name and so did the Quartet. Since September 1991 the group has been known as the St. Petersburg String Quartet.
   Sony Classical released CDs of the St. Petersburg Quartet playing the Complete Quartets of Tchaikovsky, Quartets Nos. 1 & 2 of Borodin and Quartets Nos.3, 5 & 7 of Shostakovich, which was nominated for a Grammy Award in '96 and chosen "BEST RECORD OF THE MONTH" in Stereo Review and Gramophone.
   The Quartet spent the '97-98 year as Quartet in Residence at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, while giving over 70 performances in the U.S. and many abroad. In 1998-99 they made débuts in London's Wigmore Hall, performed in a number of British festivals including Aldeburgh, made Canadian débuts in Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa, and continued their active touring in the U.S. including appearances on Lincoln Center's "Great Performances" series and the 92nd Street Y in New York. They perform regularly on many of the most prestigious series and music festivals across North America, Europe and Asia, including repeat invitations to Caramoor (NY), Piccolo Spoleto, Music Mountain and numerous others.
   In Summer `99, the Quartet performed at Maverick Concerts (the first foreign ensemble to be invited to do so since World War II), Music Mountain, UCLA, and the Colorado, Mendocino, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Music Festivals. They coached at the 92nd St. Y School of Music and the Musicorda Festival. Their 1999-2000 season included concerts at MIT, Duke University, the Chamber Music Societies of Norfolk and Williamsburg, Virginia, the Los Angeles Music Guild, the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Long Island University's Tilles Center, University of Missouri at St. Louis, and many others. They also toured Germany (including the prestigious Frankfurt Museum Series), Holland (including the Concertgebouw), Great Britain (including Wigmore Hall), and Ireland, and appeared in major festivals in Mexico and Belgium.
   Highlights of the Quartet's current season include appearances at the Frick Collection in NYC, the Chautauqua Summer Music Festival, the prestigious Eastman School of Music Chamber Music Series, numerous concerts throughout the U.S. including debuts in Detroit and Memphis, and a residency at Mainly Mozart San Diego. International tours include the U.K. (including their 5th concert at London's Wigmore Hall in 3 years), Germany (including Munich and the Alte Oper Frankfurt), the Netherlands, Switzerland and Mexico.
   The St. Petersburg String Quartet is currently the quartet-in-residence at Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio, a position they have held for the last four years. They are represented by Lisa Sapinkopf Artists.
   Quartet members are Alla Aranovskaya, 1st Violin; Ilya Teplyakov, 2nd Violin; Aleksey Koptev, Viola and Leonid Shukaev, Cello.

   Photo album of St. Petersburg String Quartet

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