tokyo string quartet

The Tokyo String Quartet is a wonderful group of string musicians. My friend's father plays the viola in this group and I had the fortunate opportunity to see their most recent performance at the 92nd St Y on the UES.
The program was part classic, starting with a Haydn piece and ending with a dynamic Brahms piece. But in between was the NY premiere of a contemporary piece called "Blossoming" by composer Toshio Hosokawa. This young composer wrote this piece for the Tokyo String Quartet. The story being told was a lotus flower blossoming, representing the opening of the mind and awakening of the self. The sounds were very still and parts were very reminiscent of Noh theater.
The Tokyo String Quarter is always traveling and performing around the world - perhaps you will have a chance to hear them sometime.