Alexander String Quartet (Provided photo)

SARANAC — The Alexander String Quartet is scheduled to perform at the Saranac Methodist Church on state Route 3 in Saranac on Sunday at 3 p.m.

This quartet stands among the world’s premier ensembles, having performed in the major music capitals of five continents. The quartet is a vital artistic presence in its home base of San Francisco, serving since 1989 as ensemble-in-residence of San Francisco Performances. They are widely admired for their interpretations of Beethoven, Mozart and Shostakovich.

Founded in New York City in 1981, the ensemble won the Concert Artists Guild Competition in 1982 and became the first American quartet to win the London (now Wigmore) International String Quartet Competition in 1985. The members of the Alexander String Quartet are recipients of honorary degrees from Allegheny College and St. Lawrence University, and Presidential medals from Baruch College.

The Alexander String Quartet has performed at Lincoln Center, the 92nd Street Y, the Metropolitan Museum, Jordan Hall, the Library of Congress, and appeared as guests at universities including Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Lewis and Clark, and UCLA. Their visit to Poland’s Beethoven Easter Festival is captured in the 2017 award-winning documentary, “Con Moto: The Alexander String Quartet.”

The Alexander String Quartet’s Saranac program features masterpieces from the first half of the 20th century: Jean Sibelius’s “String Quartet in D minor, Op. 56 ‘Voces Intimae'” (1908-9) and Dmitri Shostakovich’s “String Quartet No. 2 in A major, Op. 68” (1944) plus a contemporary work by British-American composer Tarik O’Regan: “Gradual” (2016, rev. 2022).

General admission at the door is $20; seniors and students $15; children under 12 free; family rate available. For more information, call 518-293-7613, e-mail ambrown.hillholl@gmail.com or visit hillandhollowmusic.org.