Turtle Island String Quartet emphasizes the classical in its mixes By R.J. DELUKE First published: Thursday, April 8, 2010 The idea of the string quartet performing traditional classical and chamber music has to be pushed aside when one considers the Turtle Island String Quartet. Pushed way aside. The group was created some 25 years ago with the idea of blurring the lines between musical genres; using traditional classical approaches as a base, but adding jazz improvisation and elements of ... Read More

March 20, 2010 Concert review: Turtle Island String Quartet doesn't disappoint in Jazz Fest return By Susan L. Peña Reading Eagle Reading, PA - The Turtle Island String Quartet returned to the Berks Jazz Fest, having performed here several times; this time they brought with them the eminent jazz pianist, Cyrus Chestnut—a collaboration made in heaven. Their performance Saturday night at Reading Area Community College’s Miller Center for the Arts bore all the hallmarks of a Turtle Island ... Read More

The Washington Post Luna Negra Dance Theater at Strathmore By Rebecca J. Ritzel Monday, March 22, 2010; C05 If the arts ever recover from this recession, pray that more dance companies make performing with live music a priority. Until then? Seek out and savor nights like Friday, when Luna Negra Dance Theater unveiled a commission from Strathmore. In a collaboration to remember, the Chicago troupe shared the stage with the Turtle Island Quartet and jazz clarinet legend Paquito ... Read More

OUT OF THEIR SHELL Turtle Island String Quartet takes the art of improvisation to new heights with Coltrane concert Friday, March 12, 2010 By Chris Waddington Contributing writer Can you snap your fingers and sway to a string quartet? Jazz purists and classical snobs used to laugh at the notion. Then, in 1985, the Turtle Island String Quartet began to do the unlikely, creating swinging, improvised music that incorporated delta blues, Indian ragas, Celtic fiddle techniques, be-bop harmonies ... Read More

Concert review: Turtle Island Quartet takes crossover jazz to new level Published: Thursday, March 4, 2010 11:40 p.m. MST TURTLE ISLAND QUARTET, de Jong Concert Hall, Brigham Young University, March 4 Jazz performed by a string quartet? At first glance the two would seem mutually exclusive — until Turtle Island Quartet showed the world how it could be done. Turtle Island Quartet, which played at BYU Thursday, has taken the concept of crossover to a new level — infusing jazz playing with ... Read More

By Bret Saunders Posted: 02/21/2010 01:00:00 AM MST DENVER POST February 21, 2010 The Turtle Island String Quartet with their trophy during the Grammy Awards in 2006. The Turtle Island Quartet celebrates 25 years as a group in 2010, but it's only in the past few years that they've received the accolades owed to them since the '80s. What sets them apart from other classically oriented string bands is the remarkable lightness in their sense of swing and a playfulness that lends itself to jazz ... Read More

JAZZ TIMES.COM by Aubrey Everett 02/12/10 Turtle Island Quartet to Record Hendrix Tribute The string group picked Hendrix tracks to celebrate its 25th anniversary By Aubrey Everett The musically diverse and award winning Turtle Island Quartet have chosen a unique way to celebrate its 25th anniversary this month by recording a Jimi Hendrix-inspired album titled Have You Ever Been… (Telarc). The group, joined by Stefon Harris and Mike Marshall, will step into the Skywalker Sound studio in ... Read More

IN THE STUDIO: TURTLE ISLAND QUARTET CELEBRATES 25TH ANNIVERSARY WITH JIMI HENDRIX-INSPIRED RECORDING Award-Winning Quartet Joined By Special Guests Stefon Harris, Mike Marshall Through their exploration of folk, bluegrass, swing, be-bop, funk, R&B, new age, rock, and hip-hop, Turtle Island Quartet has taken its audiences on a journey through many musical genres, eras, and places – the American landscape, Latin America, Europe, and India to name a few. Now the Grammy®-winning ... Read More

The Full Performance is now available on the WHYY website! Check it out at http://video.whyy.org/video/1162947977 Here is the WHYY blurb about the episode: Program: On Canvas -Episode: Turtle Island Quartet With a name derived from creation mythology found in Native American folklore, Turtle Island Quartet has been creating chic and daring trends in chamber music for string instruments since 1985. Winner of the 2006 and 2008 Grammy Awards for Best Classical Crossover Album, Turtle Island ... Read More