Seven Days: Vermont's Independent Voice

High Strung

Cuarteto Casals’ biography sounds familiar. Like many classical collectives, the young string quartet was formed at a leading music college, went on to nab international awards and currently tours the world with seasoned interpretations of the masterworks. But the Madrid-based foursome — named for Pablo Casals, a cellist remembered as one of the world’s best — sets itself apart in a few key ways. Noted for its precise attacks and gradations, the refined playing “has a vivid sonic signature,” notes the New York Times. And its rotating violinists add a nuanced fervor to works by the likes of Shostakovich, Schubert, Arriaga and Boccherini. Take in two slightly different programs at the Lane Series and the Northeast Kingdom Classical Series.