The Emerson String Quartet, also known as the Emerson Quartet, is an American string quartet that was initially formed as a student group at the Juilliard School in 1976. It was named for American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson and began touring professionally in 1976. The ensemble taught in residence at The Hartt School in the 1980s and is currently (2022) the quartet in residence at Stony Brook University. Both of the founding violinists studied with Oscar Shumsky at Juilliard, and the two alternated as first and second violinists for the group. The Emerson Quartet was one of the first such ensembles with the two violinists alternating chairs. The Emerson Quartet was inducted into the Classical Music Hall of Fame in 2010. , they have released more than thirty albums and won nine Grammy Awards, as well as the prestigious Avery Fisher Prize. In August 2021 the quartet announced its plan to disband at the end of the 2022–2023 season in order to focus on teaching and solo work. Members The current members of the group are: Eugene Drucker and Philip Setzer, violin; Lawrence Dutton, viola (since 1977); and Paul Watkins, cello (since 2013). Previous members were: Guillermo Figueroa, Jr., viola (1976–1977); Eric Wilson, cello (1976–1979); and David Finckel, cello (1979–2013). History In the early 1980s, Deutsche Grammophon chose the Emerson Quartet to begin a series of recordings of the string quartet literature to be released on the new CD digital format. Cellist David Finckel called this a "huge break" for the ensemble, allowing it to develop a worldwide audience for its performances. Instruments In addition to using their Stradivarius instruments, the Emerson quartet own instruments by Samuel Zygmuntowicz which they often favour in larger halls as they believe they have better projection. Violinist Eugene Drucker even says of his modern violin "In a large space like Carnegie Hall, the Zygmuntowicz is superior to my Strad. It has more power and punch." Awards and recognition Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance: 1989 Bartók: 6 String Quartets 1993 Ives: String Quartets Nos. 1, 2; Barber: String Quartet Op.11 (American Originals) 1997 Beethoven: The String Quartets 2000 Shostakovich: The String Quartets 2005 Mendelssohn: The Complete String Quartets 2006 Intimate Voices 2009 Intimate Letters Grammy Award for Best Classical Album: 1989 Bartók: 6 String Quartets 2000 Shostakovich: The String Quartets Gramophone Classical Music Awards: Chamber (Record of the Year) 1989 -