Quatuor Mosaïques was founded in 1985 by four members of 'Concentus Musicus', the pioneering ensemble for the performance of early music, led by Nikolaus Harnoncourt. The quartet plays on historical instruments and specializes in the performance of music from the 18th century. Their debut recording with the string quartets opus 77 by Joseph Haydn and the recordings that followed have now become references. Although often labeled as 'authentic', the Quatuor Mosaïques does not primarily strive for a historically faithful performance, but uses the low tuning, gut strings and baroque and classical bows to serve the music. In addition to two quartets by their 'personal composers' Mozart and Haydn, we are also introduced to work by the German Johann Benjamin Gross. This unknown contemporary and friend of Schumann composed a long list of symphonic and chamber music works in which the cello plays the leading role. The rediscovery of Gross on the concert stages is partly due to the cellist of the Quatuor Mosaïques, Christophe Coin.
