List of string quartet composers

List of string quartet composers

 

This is a list of string quartet composers, chronologically sorted by date of birth and then by surname. The list is by no means complete. String quartets are written for four string instruments—usually two violins, viola and cello—unless otherwise stated.

 

Born in the 18th centuryBorn in the 1700s

 

Giovanni Battista Sammartini (c. 1700–1775): Wrote several quartets though as with many early works for the medium some of these could be played equally by a small string orchestra.

• Charles Wesley (1707–1788): 6 Quartettos, published in 1779.
• Franz Xaver Richter (1709–1789): Wrote string quartets, Op. 5 numbers 1–6 (1757).

A string quartet in performance

Born in the 1720s

 

Carl Friedrich Abel (1723–1787): 12 string quartets

 

Florian Leopold Gassmann (1729–1774): He is thought to have composed 37 string quartets, including six quartetti published c. 1768 as Op. 1 (H431–6); a set published as Op. 2 (H441–2, 435, 444–6); and a further six published in 1804 (H451–6).^[1]

Born in the 1730s

• Christian Cannabich (1731–1798): six string quartets Op. 5 (about 1780).
• Joseph Haydn (1732–1809): wrote sixty-eight string quartets (some of which he called Divertimenti), the last incomplete, plus Die Sieben letzten Worte unseres Erlösers am Kreuze (The Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross), a sequence of eight slow movements plus a brief, rapid, finale (originally written for orchestra, but probably better known in its version for string quartet). He also arranged a set of six preludes and fugues by Gregor Werner for string quartet.
  • List of string quartets by Joseph Haydn
• François Joseph Gossec (1734–1829): twelve string quartets: Op. 14 (1770) and Op. 15 (1772) [1]
• Michael Haydn (1737–1806): 19 string quartets.
• Johann Baptist Wanhal (1739–1813): over seventy string quartets. ([2])

Born in the 1740s

 

Ernst Eichner (1740–1777): in addition to flute quartets he wrote a set of six string quartets, Sechs Quartette Op. 12 (published 1776–77)

• Václav Pichl (1741–1805): wrote over thirty quartets; he was one of the founders of the Vienna Violin School.
• Roman Hoffstetter (1742–1815): an Austrian monk and composer, now supposed to have composed the six string quartets known as Haydn's Op. 3, including the well-known 'Serenade Quartet'.
• Luigi Boccherini (1743–1805): A prolific composer in most chamber music genres, Boccherini wrote ninety-one string quartets — he also wrote many string quintets.
• Giuseppe Cambini (1746–1825): wrote 149 string quartets and 30 quartets d'airs variés ([3]) (many of which exist also in versions with winds. Alfred Einstein suggests that Mozart's fourth flute quartet, in his opinion a satirical work, may have been in part a comment on their popularity.)

Born in the 1750s

• Antonio Rosetti (c.1750–1792): 11 string quartets.
• Bartolomeo Campagnoli (1751–1827): wrote six string quartets.
• Franz Anton Hoffmeister (1754–1812): fifty string quartets (plus seven for vn, 2va, vc) (source: Grove online).
• Giovanni Battista Viotti (1755–1824): seventeen string quartets.
• Franz Grill (1756?–1792): nine string quartets.
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791): wrote twenty-three string quartets, including the six so-called Haydn Quartets (1782–1785), generally reckoned to be his best.
• Joseph Martin Kraus (1756–1792): wrote altogether 16 string quartets (6 Goetingen quartets are lost). See also his Flute quintet in D major.
• Paul Wranitzky (1756–1808): wrote seventy-three string quartets which, at their best (the six quartets of Op. 16, the three of Op. 23), are second only to Haydn and the mature Mozart in quality.
• Alessandro Rolla (1757–1841): ten string quartets: three as Op. 2, three as Op. 5, and four others (source: Grove).
• Franz Krommer / František Kramář (1759–1831): wrote approximately 100 string quartets, many of which were very popular in early 19th century Vienna, and were compared positively to Beethoven's quartets.

Born in the 1760s

• Luigi Cherubini (1760–1842): wrote six string quartets (1814–1837).
• Antonín Vranický / Anton Wranitzky (1761–1820): wrote 30 quartets. A founder of the Vienna "violin school" and major virtuoso, he was the teacher of Ignaz Schuppanzigh and leader of the Lobkowitz Orchestra.
• Adalbert Gyrowetz / Vojtěch Matyáš Jírovec (1763–1850): friend of Mozart, wrote at least forty-two string quartets (Grove), possibly more than fifty (Hyperion CD notes).
• Joseph Leopold Eybler (1765–1846): friend of Mozart, pupil of Albrechtsberger (who declared him to be the greatest musical genius in Vienna apart from Mozart) and a protégé of Joseph Haydn. Three string quartets, Op. 1, available on CD, written at the age of 22 in 1787 (published in 1794.)
• Samuel Wesley (1766–1837): at least one quartet (in E♭, written around 1810. [4])
• Bernhard Romberg (1767–1841): wrote 11 complete string quartets, two sets of three quartets each Op. 1 & 25, and single quartets Opp. 12, 37, 39, 59, 60.^[2]
• Andreas Romberg (1767–1821): wrote 29 complete string quartets, three quartets each in Opp. 1, 2, 5, 7, 16, 30, 53, 59 and 76, a single quartet, Op. 40, including a "quatuor brilliant", Op. 11. He also wrote three rondos for string quartet, Op. 34.

Born in the 1770s

• Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827): wrote sixteen quartets widely regarded as among the finest quartets by any composer. The Große Fuge was originally composed as the last movement of Op. 130, but was subsequently published as a separate work.
• Johan Hoffmann (1770–1815): two quartets (in D major and F major). ([5], this link also for Hoffmann).
• Peter Hänsel (1770–1831): wrote at least ten quartets.
• Anton Reicha (1770–1836): wrote at least thirty-seven string quartets (14 of them newly discovered), of which the ten Vienna quartets (1801–06) are the most important. Though largely ignored since Reicha's lifetime, they were highly influential works. Groups in Europe have begun programming Reicha's quartets, and first modern editions and first recordings are now in the works. 1
• Ján Josef Rösler (1771–1813): Three String Quartets, Op. 6
• Antal György Csermák (c.1774–1822): wrote a quartet Die drohende Gefahr.
• Hyacinthe Jadin (1776–1800): twelve string quartets in four opera, Opp. 1, 2, 3, 4, all in four movements except Op. 4, No. 1. Modeled on Haydn & Mozart; pre-romantic.^[3]
• Joseph Küffner (1776–1856): at least five string quartets (Op. 41 nos. 1–3, Op. 52, Op. 178)^[4]
• Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778–1837): wrote three string quartets, Op. 30, No. 1 in C major; Op. 30, No. 2 in G major and Op. 30, No. 3 in E♭ major (all c. 1808).

Born in the 1780s

 

Niccolò Paganini (1782–1840): fifteen string quartets for violin, viola, guitar and cello, as well as three traditional string quartets.

• George onslow (1784–1853): thirty-six quartets written between 1810 and 1845.
• Louis Spohr (1784–1859): known as Ludwig in his native Germany, Spohr wrote thirty-six string quartets and four double quartets (for two string quartets).
  • List of string quartets by Louis Spohr
• Alexander Alyabyev (1787–1851): wrote at least two string quartets, plus one incomplete (see this concert notice)

Born in the 1790s

 

Anselm Hüttenbrenner (1794–1868): wrote two string quartets (E major 1816, C minor 1847)

• Franz Berwald (1796–1868): Swedish composer, wrote three string quartets, No. 1 in G minor (1818), No. 2 in A minor (1849), and No. 3 in E♭ major (1849).
• Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848): Much better known for his operas, Donizetti also wrote eighteen string quartets, the first sixteen between 1817 and 1821 (mostly 'scholastic works', though the fifth is his most performed), the seventeenth in 1825 and the last in 1836.
• Franz Schubert (1797–1828): traditionally reckoned to have written fifteen string quartets. The Death and the Maiden and Rosamunde quartets are particularly well known.

Born in the 19th century

Born in the 1800s

 

    Johannes Bernardus van Bree (1801–1857): three string quartets

• Jan Kalivoda (1801–1866): three string quartets
• John Lodge Ellerton (1801–1873): some 100 string quartets (many unpublished)
• Bernhard Molique (1802–1869): eight string quartets
• Charles Hommann (1803–1872?): three string quartets (by 1855)^[5]
• Franz Lachner (1803–1890): at least six quartets (No. 1 in B minor, Op. 75, No. 2 in A major, Op. 76, No. 4 in D minor, Op. 120, No. 5 in G major, Op. 169, No. 6 in E minor, Op. 173)
• Mikhail Glinka (1804–1857): After attempting to compose a quartet in 1824 (a work that remained incomplete), Glinka wrote his only finished string quartet in 1830 While this piece is now seldom performed, it and its incomplete predecessor are notable as among the first attempts by a native Russian composer to work in this genre. **String Quartet in F major" (1830)
• Fanny Mendelssohn (1805–1847): A string quartet in E♭ (1834)
• Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann (1805–1900): three string quartets ([6])
• Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga (1806–1826): Early 19th-century Spanish composer, born on Mozart's 50th birthday. Wrote three brilliant quartets (c. 1824) before his abrupt death at age 19; No. 1 in D minor; No. 2 in A major; No. 3 in E♭ major
• Václav Jindřich Veit (1806–1864): Early Romantic Czech composer, a major influence on Smetana, wrote four string quartets and five string quintets.
• Ignaz Lachner (1807–1895): wrote eight quartets (Op. 43 in F; Op. 54 in C; Op. 74 in A; Op. 104 in G; Op. 105 in A minor; Op. 106 in C for 3 violins and viola; Op. 107 in G for four violins; in B♭ Op. posth.)
• Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847): wrote six numbered string quartets: Op. 12 (1829), Op. 13 (1827), Op. 44 (three quartets, 1838), and Op. 80 (1847); an early unnumbered string quartet in E♭ major (1823); Four Pieces ("Andante", Scherzo, Capriccio, Fugue) for string quartet, Op. 81 (1847); a set of 15 fugues for string quartet, written when Mendelssohn was twelve; and another fugue (in E♭ major) for string quartet, written at age eighteen.

Born in the 1810s

 

     Norbert Burgmüller (1810–1836): four string quartets: Op. 4 in D minor, Op. in   D   minor, Op. 9 in A♭ major, and Op. 14 in A minor.

• Robert Schumann (1810–1856): wrote three string quartets (Op. 41), not among his better-known works
• Wilhelm Taubert (1811–1891): at least four string quartets (1848? to 1872?)
• Jakob Rosenhain (1813–1894): three string quartets (Op. 55 in G, Op. 57 in C, Op. 65 in D minor, published by Richault of Paris in 1864; his Am Abend variations for strings Op. 99 has been called in at least one source his 4th string quartet.)
• Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901): one string quartet, in E minor (1873)
• Robert Volkmann (1815–1883): six string quartets
• Johannes Verhulst (1816–1891): 3 string quartets
• Salvatore Pappalardo (1817–1884): 4 published quartets and several in manuscript
• Niels Gade (1817–1890) : one published quartet (D major, Op. 63) and suppressed quartets in F major, F minor and E minor
• Stanisław Moniuszko (1819–1872) : two string quartets (D minor, F major)

Born in the 1820s

• Henri Vieuxtemps (1820–1881): three string quartets (in E minor, Op. 44, in C major, Op. 51, in B♭, Op. 52 — the latter two published posthumously)
• Emilie Mayer (1821–1883): a string quartet in G minor, Op. 14 and several in manuscript
• Friedrich Kiel (1821–1885): two string quartets (Op. 53, in A minor and E♭) and waltzes Op.73 and Op. 78
• Joachim Raff (1822–1882): wrote nine string quartets, the first (1850) lost/destroyed (the other eight between 1855 and 1874); the last three (all from 1874) share an opus number and were also called suites by the composer.
• César Franck (1822–1890): wrote one string quartet (1889)
• Bedřich Smetana (1824–1884): two string quartets, No. 1 in E minor From my Life; and No. 2 in D minor, with the first being the better known
• Anton Bruckner (1824–1896): wrote one string quartet (1862)
• Carl Reinecke (1824–1910): wrote five string quartets (Op. 16 in E♭ in 1842, Op. 30 in F around 1851, Op. 132 in C around 1874, Op. 211 in D, Op. 287 in G minor)
• Edward Mollenhauer (1827–1914), United States violinist and composer born in Prussia: his best-known compositions were quartets; he also wrote three operas
• Woldemar Bargiel (1828–1897): four string quartets (including No. 3, Op. 15b in A minor and No. 4, Op. 47 in D minor)
• Anton Rubinstein (1829–1894): ten string quartets spread throughout his life
• Karl Goldmark (1830–1915): Goldmark's only string quartet was his breakthrough work, his first composition to receive very positive reviews in contemporary Viennese musical journals. Long neglected, it was recorded several times in the 1990s as part of a general revival of interest in Goldmark's chamber music. **String Quartet in B♭ major, Op.8 (1860)

Born in the 1830s

• Salomon Jadassohn (1831–1902): wrote one string quartet, in C minor, Op. 10 (1858)
• Alexander Borodin (1833–1887): two string quartets: No. 1 in A (1879) and No. 2 in D (1881)
• Johannes Brahms (1833–1897): wrote three string quartets, the first two in 1879 and the final one in 1881
• Felix Draeseke (1835–1913): wrote three string quartets between 1880 and 1895
• Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921): two string quartets: Op. 112 (1889) and Op. 153 (1918)
• Józef Wieniawski (1837–1912): at least one quartet, in A minor, Op. 32
• Max Bruch (1838–1920): two string quartets, from his student days or a little after, Op. 9 in C minor (1858/9) and Op. 10 in E major (1860)
• Ernst Eduard Taubert (1838–1934): at least four string quartets (1877 to 1902)
• Josef Rheinberger (1839–1901): two string quartets, in C minor, Op. 89 and F major, Op. 147
• Friedrich Gernsheim (1839–1916): five string quartets (No. 1 in C minor, Op. 25 (perf. 1871); No. 2 in A minor, Op. 31 (perf. 1874); No. 3 in F major, Op. 51 (1886); No. 4 in E minor, Op. 66 (perf. 1900); No. 5 in A major, Op. 83 (c. 1911))

Born in the 1840s

• Hermann Goetz (1840–1876): one string quartet in B♭ (1865–66)
• Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893): three string quartets: No. 1 in D, Op. 11 (1871); No. 2 in F, Op. 22 (1873); and No. 3 in E♭ minor, Op. 30 (1876), of which the first is the best-known, especially the Andante cantabile second movement which has been recorded many times with full orchestra
• Johan Svendsen (1840–1911): one string quartet, his Op. 1
• Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904): wrote fourteen string quartets, out of which number twelve, the American, is the best known
• Giovanni Sgambati (1841–1914): wrote a string quartet in D♭ major, his Op. 17 (1882)
• Elfrida Andrée (1841–1929): wrote one string quartet in D minor ([7]) and another in A major (published in 2000)
• Heinrich von Herzogenberg (1843–1900): wrote five string quartets (1876–1890)
• Edvard Grieg (1843–1907): wrote two string quartets, the second being unfinished
• Ján Levoslav Bella (1843–1936): wrote three string quartets, in E minor (1871), C minor (1880) and B♭ minor (1887)
• Georg Wilhelm Rauchenecker (1844–1906): wrote six string quartets
• Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844–1908): better known for his orchestral suites, he also wrote three complete string quartets, two single movements and three other pieces for string quartet
• Clara Kathleen Rogers (1844–1931): 2 string quartets
• Gabriel Fauré (1845–1924): one string quartet, in E minor, Op. 121 (1924)
• August Klughardt (1847–1902): two string quartets (in F, Op. 42 and in D, Op. 61)
• Robert Fuchs (1847–1927): four string quartets: No. 1 in E, Op. 58 (1895); No. 2 in A minor, Op. 62 (1899); No. 3 in C, Op. 71 (1903); No. 4 in A, Op. 106 (1916) (Austrian National Library claims to have a late 5th quartet)
• Alexander Mackenzie (1847–1935): one string quartet in G (1868)
• Hubert Parry (1848–1918): 3 string quartets (unpublished during his lifetime)
• Wilhelm Fitzenhagen (1848–1890): one string quartet, in D minor, Op. 23 (c. 1870)

Born in the 1850s

• Zdeněk Fibich (1850–1900): wrote two string quartets (A major, 1874, G major, 1878) and a set of variations for quartet (B♭, 1883) according to Orfeo CD label
• Alexander Taneyev (1850–1918): three string quartets: No. 1 in G major, Op. 25; No. 2 in C major, Op. 28; and No. 3 in A major, Op. 30 (source: Olympia CD notes)
• Antonio Scontrino (1850–1922): wrote four string quartets (A minor, G minor, F major, C major) and a movement (prelude and fugue in E minor) for string quartet
• Vincent d'Indy (1851–1931): wrote three string quartets
• Charles Villiers Stanford (1852–1924): wrote eight string quartets (1891–1919)
• Leoš Janáček (1854–1928): wrote two string quartets, known as The Kreutzer Sonata and Intimate Letters
• Ernest Chausson (1855–1899): wrote one string quartet in three movements; the third movement was completed by Vincent d'Indy after Chausson's death in 1899
• Christian Sinding (1856–1941): wrote a string quartet, his Op. 70
• Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev (1856–1915): nine complete string quartets, two partial (source: Grove Music online)
• Edward Elgar (1857–1934): one string quartet in E minor, Op. 83 (1918)
• Sylvio Lazzari (1857–1944): a string quartet in A minor, Op. 17
• Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924): an elegy for string quartet, Crisantemi ("Chrysanthemums"), that he wrote in 1890
• Ethel Smyth (1858–1944): one published string quartet, in E minor (1902–1912) and one unpublished, dating from her student days in Leipzig, in C minor
• Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov (1859–1935): at least one string quartet, Op. 13 in A minor
• Josef Bohuslav Foerster (1859–1951): five string quartets (1888–1951; the fifth incomplete at his death)
• Nikolay Sokolov (1859–1922): wrote three string quartets (in F Op. 7, in A Op. 14 and in D minor, Op. 20, published 1890, 1892 and 1894) and contributed to projects of the Belyayev circle with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Alexander Glazunov, Alexander Kopylov and others (including a polka for Les Vendredis for string quartet and other works)

Born in the 1860s

• Emil von Reznicek (1860–1945): four string quartets, including No. 1 in C♯ minor (1921), also in D minor ([8]; pub. Bimbach, 1923, Berlin) and B♭ major (pub. Bimbach, 1932), quartet in C minor (published by E.W. Fritzsch, Leipzig, 1883). (Also fragments, early quartets, alternate versions? The situation is clarified somewhat in the article and some of the manuscripts are now being published.)
• Hugo Wolf (1860–1903): wrote one string quartet (1884) and a more famous Italian Serenade for string quartet (1892); also, an Intermezzo
• Anton Arensky (1861–1906): two string quartets, No. 1 (Op. 11) and No. 2 (Op. 35), the latter for violin, viola and two cellos and including the Variations on a Theme of Tchaikovsky, also arranged for string orchestra.
• Charles Martin Loeffler (1861–1935): two string quartets, in A minor (1889), and Music for Four Stringed Instruments (1917)
• Claude Debussy (1862–1918): one string quartet, in G minor, Op. 10 (1893)
• Frederick Delius (1862–1934): wrote three string quartets (1888, 1893 and 1916)
• Friedrich Klose (1862–1942): one string quartet ("Ein Tribut in vier Raten entrichtet an Seine Gestrengen den deutschen Schulmeister"), in E♭ major (1911)
• Emánuel Moór (1863–1931): two string quartets, op. 59 in A and op. 87, and other works for string quartet^[6]
• Hugo Kaun (1863–1932): 4 String Quartets (in F major, Op. 40, pub. 1898; in D minor, Op. 41, pub. 1899; in C minor, Op. 74, pub. 1907; in A minor, Op. 114, pub. 1921)
• Felix Weingartner (1863–1942): five string quartets (in D minor, Op. 24, in F minor, Op. 26, in F, Op. 34, in D, Op. 62, and in E♭, Op. 81, pub. 1899, 1900, 1903, 1918 and ?)
• Eugen d'Albert (1864–1932): two string quartets (in A minor, Op. 7 and in E♭, Op. 11, 1887 and 1893)
• Alexander Gretchaninov (1864–1956): four string quartets: No. 1 in G major, Op. 2 (1894); No. 2 in D minor, Op. 70 (1913); No. 3 in C minor, Op. 75 (1915); No. 4 in F major, Op. 124 (1929)
• Alberto Nepomuceno (1864–1920): wrote three string quartets
• Guy Ropartz (1864–1955): six quartets (1893–1951)
• Richard Strauss (1864–1949): wrote one string quartet
• Albéric Magnard (1865–1914): wrote one string quartet (Op. 16, 1903)
• Gustav Jenner (1865–1920): wrote three string quartets (1907, 1910 and 1911 — [9])
• Carl Nielsen (1865–1931): wrote four published string quartets, also an early quartet and quartet movements
• Alexander Glazunov (1865–1936): wrote seven string quartets, and numerous other compositions for string quartet (the Five Pieces of 1879–1881, the Five Novelettes Op. 15, the Finale of the B-la-F Quartet and the first movement Carol-singers of the Name-day Quartet, the Suite Op. 35, the Two Pieces of 1902, and the Elegy for Belyayev Op. 105). The Third Quartet (1888) is often nicknamed the Slav Quartet, while the Seventh Quartet (1930) is subtitled "Homage to the Past".
• Robert Kahn (1865–1951): wrote two string quartets: in A major, Op. 8, and in A minor, Op. 60 (published in 1890 and 1914 respectively)
• Jean Sibelius (1865–1957): wrote three youthful quartets (in E♭, 1885; in A minor, 1889; and in B♭, Op. 4, 1890) and his much better known quartet Voces Intimae, Op. 56 (1909) [10]
• Ferruccio Busoni (1866–1924): two string quartets, Op. 19 in C minor (1884) and Op. 26 in D minor (1887)
• Ewald Straesser (1867–1933): 5 string quartets (publication dates 1901, 1901, 1913, 1920, 1927)
• Amy Beach (1867–1944): wrote one quartet, String Quartet in one Movement, Op. 89 (1921)
• Charles Koechlin (1867–1950): three string quartets, in D Op. 51 (1911–13), Op. 57 (1911–16), Op. 72 in D (1917–21)
• Max von Schillings (1868–1933): string quartet in E minor (about 1887)
• John Blackwood McEwen (1868–1948): 17 string quartets written from 1898 to 1947
• Albert Roussel (1869–1937): wrote one string quartet (in D major, his Op. 45, 1931–1932)
• Hans Pfitzner (1869–1949): wrote four string quartets (in D minor, without Op. number, 1886; D major, Op. 13 1903, C♯ minor, Op. 36 from 1925 - later arranged into a symphony, and C minor, Op. 50, 1942)

Born in the 1870s

• Alfred Hill (1870–1960): Australian composer, wrote seventeen string quartets.
• Vítězslav Novák (1870–1949): three quartets (1899–1938)
• Joseph Ryelandt (1870–1965): Four string quartets (1897–1943)^[7]
• Florent Schmitt (1870–1958): String Quartet in G, Op. 112 (1947)
• Louis Vierne (1870–1937): one string quartet (1894)
• Henry Kimball Hadley (1871–1937): wrote two string quartets: No. 1 in A, Op. 24, and No. 2, Op. 132 (1932)
• Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871–1927): Swedish composer, wrote seven string quartets (but withdrew one quartet, in F minor), and arranged other works for quartet
• Alexander von Zemlinsky (1871–1942) four string quartets and two movements for string quartet: No. 1 in A major, Op. 4 (1896); No. 2, Op. 15 (1913–15); No. 3, Op. 19 (1924); No. 4 (Suite), Op. 25 (1936); and two movements for string quartet (1927)
• Paul Juon (1872–1940): four string quartets (a youthful Op. five and three acknowledged quartets Op. 11 in B minor, Op. 29 in A minor and Op. 67 in C)
• Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872–1958): two numbered string quartets: No. 1 in G minor (1908, rev. 1921) and No. 2 in A minor (1942/3). Also one student work in C minor (1897)
• Max Reger (1873–1916): wrote six string quartets (including an early posthumously-published work with an optional part for double bass)
• Reynaldo Hahn (1874–1947): at least two string quartets (A minor from 1939, F major from 1943)
• Charles Ives (1874–1954): wrote two string quartets (1896 and 1913), the first entitled From the Salvation Army
• Arnold Schoenberg (1874–1951): wrote four numbered string quartets, the second of which includes a part for soprano. Also composed an early, unnumbered, string quartet
• Franz Schmidt (1874–1939): quartet 1 in A (1925), quartet 2 in G (1929)
• Josef Suk (1874–1935): two string quartets — in B♭, Op. 11 from 1896, and Op. 31 in one movement from 1911, tonal but from G minor -> D♭. Also the Meditation on the Old Czech Chorale St. Wenceslas, Op. 35a, 1914
• Franco Alfano (1875–1954): wrote three string quartets
• Reinhold Glière (1875–1956): wrote four string quartets: in A major, Op. 2 (1899), in G minor, Op. 20 (1905), in D minor, Op. 67 (1927), in F minor, Op. 83 (1943)
• Fritz Kreisler (1875–1962): wrote a string quartet in A minor (1919)
• Erkki Melartin (1875–1937): wrote four quartets, in E minor (1896), G minor (1900), E♭major (1902) and in F (1910) ([11])

     Maurice Ravel (1875–1937): one string quartet, in F major (1903)

• (Wilhelm) Paul Richter (1875–1950): at least three string quartets (his opp. 98 in C minor, 99 in D minor and 122 in E major) No.2, Op.99 was composed in 1937.^[8] All 3 published by Frieder Latzina-Verlag of Karlsruhe in 2001–2002.^[9]
• Richard Wetz (1875–1935): wrote two string quartets: in F minor, Op. 43, in E minor, Op. 49
• Erno Dohnányi (1877–1960): wrote three string quartets (1899, 1906, 1926)
• Lucien Durosoir (1878–1955): wrote three string quartets (1920, 1922, 1933–34)
• Joseph Holbrooke (1878–1958): wrote six string quartets (No.1 Op.17b Fantasie-Quartet (1904, pub.1922), No.2 War Impressions Op.58a pub.1915, No.3 Pickwick Club Op.68 pub.1916, No.4 Folksong Suite Op.71 c. 1916, No.5 Folksong Suite No.2 Op.72 c.1917, No.6 Folksong Suite No.3 Op.73 c. 1918) and a further Suite No.1 "Cambria" Op.101
• Frank Bridge (1879–1941): five string quartets: B♭(1901); No. 1 in E minor ('Bologna') (1906); No. 2 in G minor (1915); No. 3 (1926); No. 4 (1937), plus a host of other, shorter pieces
• Jean Cras (1879–1932): one string quartet (1909) ^[10]
• John Ireland (1879–1962): two string quartets: D minor (1895–1897? - scholarship work, RCM) and C minor (1897? - composed as a student work at the R.C.M.) (both published only c. 1973)^[11]
• Ottorino Respighi (1879–1936): seven / eight string quartets / works for quartet (one with an unusual instrumentation): D major (1898), Cortège (1898), B♭ major (1898), D♭ major (1903) (incomplete?), D major (1904), in D major for quinton, viola d’amore, viola da gamba, viola da basso (1904), D minor (1909) and Quartetto Dorico (1924)^[12]

Born in the 1880s

• Ernest Bloch (1880–1959): wrote six string quartets (in G (1896) and five numbered quartets- 1916, 1945, 1952, 1953, 1956; individual shorter works e.g. In the Mountains (1924), Prelude (1925), Night (1923), 2 Pieces (1938, 1950), Paysages (1923))
• Ermend Bonnal (1880–1944): two string quartets (1927? and 1934) [12]
• Ildebrando Pizzetti (1880–1968): two string quartets in A major (1906) and D major (1932–33)
• Béla Bartók (1881–1945): wrote six string quartets widely regarded as being the finest quartets of the first half of the 20th century
• George Enescu (1881–1955): wrote two string quartets (No. 1 in E♭ and No. 2 in G, Op. 22 nos. 1 and 2, 1916 – 1920 and 1951)
• Nikolai Myaskovsky (1881–1950): wrote thirteen (1907–1949)
• Nikolai Roslavets (1881–1944): wrote five string quartets (1913, 1915, 1920, 1929–31, 1942 [13]); only nos. 1 & 3 survive
• Ignatz Waghalter (1881–1949): one string quartet, in D major, Op. 3
• Karl Weigl (1881–1949): wrote eight string quartets: No. 1 (1903 or 1905); No. 2 (1906); No. 3 (1909); No. 4 (1924); No. 5 (1933); No. 6 (1939); No. 7 (1942); No. 8 (1949)
• Zoltán Kodály (1882–1967): wrote two string quartets (1908 and 1917)
• Joseph Marx (1882–1964): wrote three string quartets ([14]) not counting the original version of one and a draft.
• Gian Francesco Malipiero (1882–1973): wrote eight string quartets (1920–1964)
• Artur Schnabel (1882–1951): wrote five string quartets (1918–1940 - [15])
• Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971): Three Pieces for String Quartet (1914); Concertino (1920); Double Canon for String Quartet (1959)
• Joaquín Turina (1882–1949): early quartet Op. 4 (1911) and a later work for string quartet, La Oración del Torero (1925)
• Karol Szymanowski (1882–1937): two string quartets, No. 1, Op. 37 in C major (1917) and No. 2, Op. 56 (1927)
• Arnold Bax (1883–1953): three string quartets: No. 1 in G major (1918), No. 2 in E minor and No. 3 in F major (1936)
• Fran Lhotka (1883–1962): string quartet in G minor
• Anton Webern (1883–1945): his String Quartet is composed using the twelve-tone technique. His Five Movements, Op. 5 (1909) and Six Bagatelles, Op. 9 (1911–13) are also significant in SQ literature. Plus, a string quartet, a slow movement and a rondo from 1905
• Alban Berg (1885–1935): String Quartet, Op. 3 (1910) and Lyric Suite (Berg) (1926) for string quartet.
• Egon Wellesz (1885–1974): wrote nine string quartets, No. 1 'in five movements' Op. 14 (1911–12) through No. 9, Op. 97 (1966) and Op. 103 Music for String Quartet
• Othmar Schoeck (1886–1957): wrote two string quartets (Opp. 23, 1913, and 37, 1923) and a movement for string quartet (1908).
• Kurt Atterberg (1887–1974): three string quartets, only one, No. 2 in B minor, recorded
• Ernst Toch (1887–1964): 13 string quartets, the first five now lost, and a brief Dedication for quartet.
• Fartein Valen (1887–1952): wrote two string quartets
• Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887–1959): wrote seventeen string quartets between 1915 and 1957
• Matthijs Vermeulen (1888–1967): wrote one string quartet (1960–61)
• Johanna Beyer (1888–1944): wrote at least four (1934, 1936, ?, 1943)

Born in the 1890s

• Olga Diener (1890–1963): wrote at least thirty-two string quartets^[13]
• Bohuslav Martinů (1890–1959): wrote ten string quartets of which only eight survive, Nos. 1-7 and the unnumbered Tři jezdci (1902)
• Arthur Bliss (1891–1975): four string quartets: No. 1 in A major (1914); No. 2 (1923); No. 3 in B♭ (1941); No. 4 (1950)
• Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953): wrote two string quartets (1930 and 1941)
• Arthur Honegger (1892–1955): wrote three string quartets, in C minor (1917), D major (1936), and E major (1937)
• Darius Milhaud (1892–1974): wrote eighteen, the fourteenth and fifteenth of which may be played as an octet
• Hilding Rosenberg (1892–1985): wrote twelve (No. 1, 1920 revised 1955 to No. 12, 1957)
• Germaine Tailleferre (1892–1983): wrote one quartet (1917–19)
• Arthur Lourié (1892–1966): wrote three (no. 1/1915, no. 2/1923 and no.3 {Suite}/1924)
• Alois Hába (1893–1973): wrote sixteen quartets, empolying various microtonal systems (e.g. No. 11 uses a sixth-tone system; No. 12, quarter-tone; No. 16, fifth-tone)
• Paul Dessau (1894–1979): seven string quartets (No. 1 before 1943 and published 1969?, No. 2 in 1942/43, No. 3 in 1943–46, No. 4 Barbaraquartett or 99 Bars for Barbara ([16]), No. 5 Quartettino (Felsenstein-Quartett) in 1955, No. 6 Sieben Sätze für Streichquartett in 1974, No. 7 in 1975 Also a string quartet movement in 1957.)
• Ernest John Moeran (1894–1950): two string quartets (in A minor and in E♭ major)
• Willem Pijper (1894–1947): five string quartets (1914, 1920, 1923, 1928, 1946)
• Walter Piston (1894–1976): wrote five string quartets (from 1933 to 1962)
• Erwin Schulhoff (1894–1942): two numbered string quartets (1924, 1925), one unnumbered quartet (1918), plus a Divertimento, Op. 14 (1914) and a set of Five Pieces (1923)
• Paul Hindemith (1895–1963): a violist, wrote seven string quartets
• Dane Rudhyar (1895–1985): Crisis and Overcoming (1978), Advent (1976)
• Roberto Gerhard (1896–1970): two string quartets (1950–55; 1960–62) [17]. Three earlier quartets at least are lost.
• Howard Hanson (1896–1981): one string quartet in one movement, his Op. 23 (1923)
• Roger Sessions (1896–1985): two string quartets (1938, 1951,) Canons to the memory of Stravinsky (1971)
• Virgil Thomson (1896–1989): wrote two string quartets (1931 and 1932)
• Henry Cowell (1897–1965): wrote four
• John Fernström (1897–1961): wrote eight
• Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897–1957): perhaps better known for his movie scores, his formal works include three string quartets, Op. 16 in A (1923), Op. 26 in E♭(1933), Op. 34 in D (1945)
• Francisco Mignone (1897–1986): wrote two, both in 1957
• Quincy Porter (1897–1966): wrote nine (No. 1 in E minor, 1922–3; No. 9, 1958.)
• Alexandre Tansman (1897–1986): wrote nine (one lost, replaced by Triptych) ([18] for most of that, Fanfare review of a recording for the rest)
• Hanns Eisler (1898–1962): wrote one string quartet, 1937 ([19])
• George Gershwin (1898–1937): wrote one piece for string quartet, a Lullaby, 1919 or 1920
• Viktor Ullmann (1898–1944): three string quartets of which two are lost.
• Pavel Haas (1899–1944): wrote three string quartets from 1920 to 1938
• Hans Krása (1899–1944): one quartet (1921)
• Jón Leifs (1899–1968): Icelandic composer, 3 string quartets: No. 1 'Mors et vita', Op. 21, (1939); No. 2 'Vita et mors', Op. 36, (1948–51); No. 3 'El Greco', Op. 64 (1965) (source: Grove)
• Silvestre Revueltas (1899–1940): wrote four quartets
• Alexander Tcherepnin (1899–1977): wrote two quartets (1922, 1926)
• Randall Thompson (1899–1984): wrote two quartets, in D minor (about 1941- possibly earlier, see Library of Congress listing?) and G major (1967)

Born in the 20th century

Born in the 1900s

• George Antheil (1900–1959): wrote three quartets (1925, 1927, 1948), plus two smaller collections
• Aaron Copland (1900–1990): wrote four pieces for string quartet (1921, unpublished; 1923, 1923, 1928)
• Ernst Krenek (1900–1991): wrote eight, covering a wide range of 20th. Century musical styles.
• Otto Luening (1900–1996): a piece for string quartet published in 1914, and two quartets published by CF Peters as string quartets 2 and 3 in the 1970s (No. 2 dating from 1922, No. 3 from 1927 [20] )
• Alexander Mosolov (1900–1973): probably two quartets (op. 24/1926, 1943); only no. 1 survived
• Ruth Crawford Seeger (1901–1953): String Quartet (1931)
• Hans Erich Apostel (1901–1972): wrote two mature numbered quartets (1935, 1956) and other works for string quartet (early quartets from 1925 and 1926; 6 Epigrams, Op.33 from 1962).^[14]
• Emil Hlobil (1901–1987): wrote at least five string quartets (at least 3 published: No. 2, Op. 15, (1935–36); No. 3, Op. 50 (1955); No. 5, Op. 81 (1971)^[15] )
• Edmund Rubbra (1901–1986): wrote four string quartets (No. 1 in F minor, Op. 35, 1933 revised 1946; No. 2 in E♭ Op. 73, 1951; No. 3, Op. 112, 1963; No. 4, Op. 150, 1977; dates from the notes to the Sterling Quartet cycle on Conifer)
• Vissarion Shebalin (1902–1963): wrote nine quartets (1923–1963) [21]
• Stefan Wolpe (1902–1972): String Quartet (1968–1969)
• William Walton (1902–1983): wrote two string quartets (1922 and 1947)
• Günter Raphael (1903–1960): wrote six quartets (1924–1954)
• Nikos Skalkottas (1904–1949): wrote a lot; only 4 works survived (no. 1/1928, no. 3/1935, no. 4/1940 & Zehn Stücke [Skizzen]/1940) plus arrangements of traditional Greek dances
• Dmitry Kabalevsky (1904–1987): wrote two string quartets (1928 and 1945)
• Karl Amadeus Hartmann (1905–1963): two quartets (1933, 1945–46)
• Alan Rawsthorne (1905–1971): four quartets (1935–1965)
• Eduard Tubin (1905–1982): wrote one string quartet
• William Alwyn (1905–1985): wrote three string quartets (1954, 1975 and 1984), Three Winter Poems for string quartet (1948), and a Novelette for String quartet (1938).
• Giacinto Scelsi (1905–1988): wrote five (1944, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1984)
• Michael Tippett (1905–1998): wrote five numbered string quartets plus two unnumbered youthful works
• Klaus Egge (1906–1979): wrote several
• Benjamin Frankel (1906–1973): wrote five (1944–1965)
• Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975): wrote fifteen string quartets
• Elisabeth Lutyens (1906–1984): wrote 13
• Ross Lee Finney (1906–1997): wrote eight (No. 1 in F minor (1935) to No. 8 (1960))
• Camargo Guarnieri (1907–1993): two string quartets (1932, 1944)
• Elizabeth Maconchy (1907–1994): thirteen quartets
• Miklós Rózsa (1907–1995): best known for his film scores, Rózsa also composed concert music including two string quartets, No. 1, Op. 22 (1950) and No. 2, Op. 38 (1981)
• Elliott Carter (1908–2012): wrote five string quartets in the second half of the 20th century; also, Elegy (1948) and Fragments 1 & 2 (1994; 1999); the second quartet won the Pulitzer Prize for Music, 1960; the third, in 1973
• Kurt Hessenberg (1908–1994): eight string quartets (1934–1987) ([22])
• Grażyna Bacewicz (1909–1969): seven string quartets, the first two only recently published and recorded (the others from 1947 to 1965)
• Vagn Holmboe (1909–1996): twenty mature and complete string quartets from 1949 to 1985 (several discarded early works, one last Quartetto sereno completed by Per Nørgård)

Born in the 1910s[edit]

• Samuel Barber (1910–1981): wrote the String Quartet No. 1 in B minor, Op. 11 (1936), from which the Adagio for Strings was orchestrated; the String Quartet No. 2, Op. 27 (1948); Serenade for string quartet, Op. 1 (1929), arranged for string orchestra in 1944; Dover Beach, for baritone (or mezzo-soprano) and string quartet, Op. 3; and a single quartet movement (1949) for a quartet whose other movements were never written
• Evgeny Golubev (1910–1988): wrote 24 string quartets (1931–1986)
• William Schuman (1910–1992): wrote five string quartets (1936–1987)
• Bernard Herrmann (1911–1975): best known as a film composer (Citizen Kane, Psycho, Taxi Driver, etc.), Echoes was his only string quartet (1966)
• Arkady Filippenko (1912–1983): Ukrainian composer who wrote three string quartets; No. 1 in A minor, No. 2 in D major, No. 3 in G major. String quartet No. 2 was awarded the U.S.S.R. State Prize in 1948. EditionSilvertrust
• John Cage (1912–1992): String Quartet in Four Parts (1950), Thirty Pieces for String Quartet (1983), Music for Four (the quartet parts extracted from his Music for...) (1987–1988), Four (1989)
• Conlon Nancarrow (1912–1997): wrote three string quartets (1945, c. 1948, 1987), second incomplete
• Benjamin Britten (1913–1976): wrote three numbered string quartets (1941, 1945 and 1975) plus two early unnumbered ones (1928 and 1931) and a number of other works for string quartet (such as the three Divertimenti, 1933)
• Tikhon Khrennikov (1913–2007): has written three quartets, the third his Op. 33 (1988)
• Witold Lutosławski (1913–1994): wrote one string quartet (1964)
• Robert Schollum (1913–1987): wrote two string quartets (Op.40 in C, 1949; Op.72, 1966).^[16]
• David Diamond (1915–2005): wrote ten string quartets, from 1940 to 1974
• George Perle (1915–2009): wrote eleven, of which five (1–4, 6) were withdrawn
• Vincent Persichetti (1915–1987): wrote four string quartets (1939, 1944, 1959, 1972)
• Milton Babbitt (1916–2011): wrote five abstract, densely serialistic quartets in the mid-20th century, and a sixth premiered in 2002
• Henri Dutilleux (1916–2013): wrote one quartet, Ainsi la nuit (1976)
• Einar Englund (1916–1999): wrote a quartet in 1985
• Alberto Ginastera (1916–1983): four string quartets, 1948 to 1974, the last with baritone to a text from Beethoven's Heiligenstadt Testament
• Brian Boydell (1917–2000): wrote three (1949, 1957, 1969), plus Adagio and Scherzo for String Quartet (1991)
• Lou Harrison (1917–2003): String Quartet Set (1979)
• Isang Yun (1917–1995): wrote six string quartets (No. 1 before 1956, No. 2 withdrawn, No. 3 in 1959, revised in 1961, No. 4 in 1988, No. 5 in 1990 and No. 6 in 1992- information from notes to recording of quartets 3 and 4, and from [23])
• George Rochberg (1918–2005) wrote seven: the sixth quartet includes a set of variations on Pachelbel's Canon; the second includes a soprano part with texts by Rilke; the seventh includes a baritone part to texts by his late son. String Quartet No. 3 is well known for its supposedly neo-romantic esthetic.
• Sven-Erik Bäck (1919–1994): wrote four (1945, 1947, 1962, 1984)
• Leon Kirchner (1919–2009): wrote four (1949, 1958, 1967, 2007); the third includes a tape part, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Music, 1967
• Mieczysław Weinberg (1919–1996): wrote seventeen, from his Op. 2 (1937 rev. 1986) to Op. 146 (1987) [24]

Born in the 1920s[edit]

• Peter Racine Fricker (1920–1990): wrote three string quartets (1947 to 1975)
• Bruno Maderna (1920–1973): Quartetto per archi (c. 1946); Quartetto per archi in due tempi (1955), dedicated to Luciano Berio
• William Bergsma (1921–1994): wrote five string quartets (1942, 1944, 1953, 1970, 1982)
• Karel Husa (born 1921): has written four; the third quartet won the Pulitzer Prize for Music, 1969
• Andrew Imbrie (1921–2007): has written at least five (fifth written in 1987)
• Joonas Kokkonen (1921–1996): wrote three string quartets (1959, 1966, 1976)
• Robert Simpson (1921–1997): wrote 15 string quartets between 1952 and 1991
• Iannis Xenakis (1922–2001): wrote four works for string quartet: "st/4 — 1,080262" (1955–1962), which was written with the help of an IBM 7090 computer using stochastic algorithms, Tetras (1983), a work in nine sections, Tetora (1990), and Ergma (1994).
• György Ligeti (1923–2006): String Quartet No. 1 ("Métamorphoses nocturnes") (1953–1954) and String Quartet No. 2 (1968)
• Peter Mennin (1923–1983): wrote two string quartets (1941 and 1951)
• Daniel Pinkham (1923–2006): wrote at least one string quartet
• Mel Powell (1923–1998): Filigree Setting (1959), String Quartet (1982)
• Lejaren Hiller (1924–1994): wrote seven
• Ezra Laderman (born 1924): has written twelve string quartets
• Luigi Nono (1924–1990): wrote Fragmente-Stille, an Diotima for string quartet (1980), inspired by the poetry of Friedrich Hölderlin
• Veniamin Basner (1925–1996): wrote 5 string quartets – No. 1 Op. 1 (1948) in one movement; No. 2 Op. 5 (1953), a piece in three movements; No. 3 Op. 9 (1960), in four movements; No. 4 Op. 18 (1969), in three movements; and No. 5 Op. 24 (1975), in two movements.^[17]
• Luciano Berio (1925–2003): Quatuor No. 1 (1956), dedicated to Bruno Maderna; Sincronie (1963–64); Notturno (1993); Glosse (1997)
• Pierre Boulez (born 1925): wrote Livre pour quatuor (1949), then withdrew it, recasting some parts later as Livre pour cordes
• Bertold Hummel (1925–2002): wrote String Quartet No. 1, Op. 3 (1951); String Quartet No. 2, Op. 46 (1972); 8 FRAGMENTS from Letters of Vincent van Gogh for Baritone and String Quartet, Op. 84 (1985); Concertante Music for Guitar and String Quartet, Op. 89a (1989)
• Gunther Schuller (born 1925): has written three
• Vladimir Shainsky (born 1925): wrote at least one string quartet
• Boris Tchaikovsky (1925–1996): wrote six (1954–1976)
• Earle Brown (1926–2002): wrote one quartet (1965)
• Morton Feldman (1926–1987): Structures (1951); Three Pieces (1954–1956); String Quartet No. 1 (1979), lasts about 100 minutes; String Quartet No. 2 (1983) lasts over six hours
• Hans Werner Henze (1926–2012): wrote five
• Ben Johnston (born 1926): has written ten string quartets – No 1 Nine Variations (1959); No 2 (1964); No 3 Vergings (1966); No 4 Amazing Grace (1973); No 5 (1979); No 6 (1980); No 7 (1984); No 8 (1984–86); No 9 (1987–88); and No 10 (1995). String Quartets Nos 3 and 4 may be performed together as Crossings.
• György Kurtág (born 1926): three works: String Quartet, Op. 1, Hommage à Mihály András (12 Microludes), Op. 13, Officium breve in memorium Andreae Szervánszky, Op. 28
• Thomas Wilson (1927–2001): wrote four string quartets most notably String Quartet No. 3 (1958) McEwen Composition Prize and String Quartet No. 4 (1978), as well as numerous other chamber works
• Thea Musgrave (born 1928): has written one string quartet (1958)
• Einojuhani Rautavaara (born 1928): has written four string quartets
• Ezra Sims (born 1928): String Quartet No. 2 (1962) (really a quintet), Third Quartet (1962)
• Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928–2007): Helikopter-Streichquartett (from "Mittwoch" from "LICHT"), for 4 helicopters & string quartet
• George Crumb (born 1929): String Quartet, and Black Angels (Images I), for electric string quartet
• Peter Sculthorpe (1929-2014): eighteen string quartets, of which the first five are considered lost, although isolated movements have been performed and recorded; the twelfth and sixteenth include optional parts for didgeridu; the thirteenth includes soprano voice

Born in the 1930s[edit]

• Tōru Takemitsu (1930–1996): A Way a Lone for string quartet (1981)
• Larry Austin (born 1930): Quartet in Open Style (1964)
• Sofia Gubaidulina (born 1931): has written four string quartets (1971, 1987, 1987, 1994), the last with tape
• Mauricio Kagel (1931–2008): wrote five
• Ib Nørholm (born 1931): has written at least nine, number 1 from 1954 to number 9 his Op. 137 in 1994 ([25], Library of Congress listing of publication has Op. No. )
• James Douglas (born 1932): British Composer of 15 String Quartets.
• Per Nørgård (born 1932): has written ten
• Alexander Goehr (born 1932): four string quartets (Op. 5 (1957), Op. 23 (1967), Op. 37 (1976), Op. 52 (1990))
• Henryk Górecki (1933–2010): String Quartet No. 1 ("Already It Is Dusk"), Op. 62, String Quartet No. 2 ("Quasi una Fantasia"), Op. 64; String Quartet No. 3 (Piesni Spiewaja, "...songs are sung"), Op. 67
• Krzysztof Penderecki (born 1933): has written three string quartets (1960, 1968, 2008); Die Unterbrochene Gedanke (1984)
• R. Murray Schafer (born 1933): twelve string quartets, as of 2013; the seventh quartet includes a soprano part, the fourth and ninth include tape parts
• Harrison Birtwistle (born 1934): Nine Movements for String Quartet (1991–96), String Quartet: The Tree of Strings (2007)
• Peter Maxwell Davies (born 1934): String Quartet in one Movement (1961); a few other shorter works; Maxwell Davies was commissioned by Naxos Records to compose ten string quartets, completed in 2007. The recordings are performed by the Maggini Quartet.
• Jan Klusák (born 1934): has composed 6 string quartets to date, the first 5 in 1955–56, 1961–62, 1975, 1990, and 1994^[18] and the most recent in 2003.^[19]
• Roger Reynolds (born 1934): Tetra, Coconino . . . A Shattered Landscape
• Alfred Schnittke (1934–1998): wrote four string quartets; also, Canon in Memoriam Igor Stravinsky and Variations for string quartet
• Christian Wolff (born 1934): Summer (1960); Lines (1972); String Quartet Exercises Out of Songs (1974–76); For E.C. (2003); for two violinists, violist and 'cellist (2008)
• Helmut Lachenmann (born 1935): three string quartets: Gran Torso (1972), Reigen seliger Geister (1989), and Grido (2001), plus Tanzsuite mit Deutschlandlied for string quartet and orchestra
• François-Bernard Mâche (born 1935): Eridan, String Quartet Op. 57 (1986), written for the Arditti Quartet; Moirés for string quartet and tape, Op. 73 (1994)
• Arvo Pärt (born 1935): Psalom, Summa, and arranged Fratres for string quartet
• Terry Riley (born 1935): String Quartet (1960); returned to pre-composed notated music at the request of the Kronos Quartet in the 1970s: G Song; Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector; Cadenza on the Night Plain; Mythic Birds Waltz; Salome Dances for Peace; Requiem for Adam; The Sands for string quartet and orchestra; The Cusp of Magic for string quartet, pipa and assorted toys; Sun Rings for string quartet, choir and backing track of sounds recorded by NASA in space, to name but a few
• Aulis Sallinen (born 1935): five string quartets
• Peter Schickele (born 1935): five string quartets, two quintets with piano
• La Monte Young (born 1935): On Remembering a Naiad (Five small pieces)(1956); Chronos Kristalla (Time Crystals) (1990), where the quartet's strings are tuned to Just intonation, natural harmonics are played throughout, and the performance lasts about ninety minutes
• Iván Eröd (born 1936): has written three quartets: op.18 (1975), op.26 (1978), op.78 (2003) - #2 and 3 recorded by the ALEA Ensemble
• Steve Reich (born 1936): Different Trains (1988), for string quartet and tape; Triple Quartet (1998), which may be performed by one quartet (with tape), three quartets, or a 36 piece orchestra; and WTC 9/11 (2009–10), for string quartet and tape
• Herbert Blendinger (born 1936): has written four quartets: op.11 (1957), op.19 (1969), op.29 (1976), op.54 (1990) - #2, 3 and 4 recorded by the ALEA Ensemble
• Erich Urbanner (born 1936): has written three quartets
• Philip Glass (born 1937): wrote three string quartets as a student, five mature string quartets (1966, 1983, 1985, 1989, 1991), music for string quartet for the 1931 film Dracula (1998) and the suite from Bent (2009); the Kronos Quartet premiered Glass' String Quartet No. 6 in 2013
• Valentin Silvestrov (born 1937): has written three quartets (1974, 1988, 2011), plus Quartetto Piccolo (1961)
• Bart Berman (born 1938): String Quartet (1958); Four Melodies for string quartet (1994)
• Gloria Coates (born 1938): has written nine string quartets up to 2009
• John Corigliano (born 1938): String Quartet (1995), revised for string orchestra as Symphony No. 2 (2000)
• Alvin Curran (born 1938): VSTO (1993)
• John Harbison (born 1938): has written three
• Paavo Heininen (born 1938): String Quartet No. 1, Op. 32c; String Quartet No. 2, Op. 64 ("Anadyr.mpl")
• Joan Tower (born 1938): 'Night Fields' (1994), 'In Memory' (2002), 'Incandescent' (2003)
• Charles Wuorinen (born 1938): has written four, plus the short Divertimento and Josquiniana, in six movements based on Josquin des Prés
• Louis Andriessen (born 1939): has written two
• Jonathan Harvey (1939–2012): wrote four
• Heinz Holliger (born 1939): has written two (1973, 2007)
• Tom Johnson (born 1939): Formulas for String Quartet (1994) (eight short movements, each following a mathematical formula); Combinations for String Quartet (2003)
• John McCabe (born 1939): has written seven
• Tomáš Svoboda (born 1939): has written ten string quartets as of 2009

Born in the 1940s[edit]

• Richard Wilson (born 1941): has written five as of 2008
• Chick Corea (born 1941): wrote one specifically for the Orion String Quartet in 2004.
• John Salacan (born 1941): composed two: Quartet No. 1 (1976) (withdrawn), and Quartet No. 2 (2014)
• Ingram Marshall (born 1942): Entrada (At the River) for string quartet amplified with processing, Evensongs, Voces Resonae (1984), and Fog Tropes II
• Meredith Monk (born 1942): Stringsongs for string quartet (2004)
• Horațiu Rădulescu (1942-2008): six string quartets, including one (no.4) for quartet plus eight other quartets (live or pre-recorded) circling the audience
• Gavin Bryars (born 1943): has written three (1986 (Between the National and the Bristol), 1990, 1998)
• Krzysztof Meyer (born 1943): has written thirteen (1963, 1969, 1971, 1974, 1977, 1981, 1985, 1985, 1989, 1994, 2001, 2005, 2010)
• Joanna Bruzdowicz (born 1943): wrote two (1983, 1988)
• Julio Estrada (born 1943): has written "Canto mnémico" (1973, rev. 1983), ishini'ioni (1984-1990) and "Quotidianus", with voice (2006)
• Brian Ferneyhough (born 1943): Sonatas for String Quartet (1967), String Quartets Nos. 2–6; the fourth includes a part for a soprano; also, Adagissimo (1983), Dum Transisset I-IV (2007), "Exordium - Elliotti Carteri in honorum centarii" (2008), Silentium (2014)
• Fred Lerdahl (born 1943): 3 string quartets (1978/2008, 1982/2010, 2008), the third of which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2010.
• Paul Lansky (born 1944): String Quartet No. 1 (1967), String Quartet No. 2 (1971–1978), Ricercare (2000)
• Michael Nyman (born 1944): five string quartets, plus a few smaller pieces
• John Tavener (1944–2013): four string quartets: The Hidden Treasure - String Quartet No. 1; The Last Sleep of the Virgin – String Quartet No. 2, for string quartet and handbells; Diódia - String Quartet No. 3; The Bridegroom – String Quartet No. 4; plus other works including parts for string quartet
• Klaas de Vries (born 1944): one string quartet (1993)
• Pēteris Vasks (born 1946): has written five string quartets
• Heinz Winbeck (born 1946): The composer of five symphonies wrote three string quartets (as of 2011), entitled Tempi capricciosi Tempi notturni (both 1979) and Jagdquartett (Hunting quartet) (1984)
• John Adams (born 1947): wrote John's Book of Alleged Dances in 1994 for the Kronos Quartet; String Quartet No. 1 (2008); Fellow Traveler (2010)
• Salvatore Sciarrino (born 1947): wrote Sei quartetti brevi (1967–1992), as well as String Quartets Nos. 7 (1999) and 8 (2008)
• Marjan Mozetich (born 1948): Changes (1971); Lament in the Trampled Garden (1992), the compulsory piece for the 1992 Banff String Quartet Competition
• Peter Ruzicka (born 1948): has written six quartets; the fourth includes a part for a speaker; the sixth includes a part for a soprano
• Julia Tsenova (1948–2010): wrote String Quartet No. 1 (2003)
• David L. Post (born 1949): has written four string quartets—No. 1 (1992), No. 2 (2001), No. 3 (2003) and No. 4 (2005). He has also written a Fantasia on a Virtual Choral for String Quartet (2003)^[20][21]
• Dave Smith (born 1949): six string quartets: No. 1 Cuban quartet (1990/2014); No. 2 Natural selections (2009/10); No. 3 African mosaic (2014); No. 4 After Albania (2014); No.5 All this and less (2014); No.6 The myth of Sisyphus (2014)
• Kevin Volans (born 1949): eleven string quartets, plus a short quartet movement; the Callino Quartet premiered String Quartet No. 11 in March 2013

Born in the 1950s

• Vladimir Anisimoff (born 1950): String Quartet Chaconne (1974)
• James Dillon (born 1950): has written seven quartets
• Lorenzo Ferrero (born 1951): Tempi di quartetto (1996–1998); Five Aztec Gods (2005)
• Aleksander Lasoń (born 1951): has written seven quartets, as of 2007
• George Tsontakis (born 1951): Five String Quartets (1980–2006) ( Tsontakis Worklist at Presser)
• Lois V Vierk (born 1951): Into the brightening air (1994/1999), dedicated to Mel Powell and River Beneath the River (1993)
• Hans Abrahamsen (born 1952): String Quartet No. 1 "Ten Preludes" (1973); String Quartet No. 2 (1981)
• Simon Bainbridge (born 1952): String Quartet (1972)
• Reinhard Febel (born 1952): String Quartet (1981/82)
• Bunita Marcus (born 1952): The Rugmaker (1986)
• Wolfgang Rihm (born 1952): has written thirteen quartets, as of 2012, plus the elegical, "Grave" (2010)(in memory of Thomas Kakuska, late violist of the Alban Berg Quartet)
• Kaija Saariaho (born 1952): Nymphea (Jardin Secret III) (1987) for string quartet and live electronics, Terra Memorium (2012)
• Georg Friedrich Haas (born 1953): has written seven; the JACK Quartet premiered Haas' Eighth String Quartet in October 2014
• John Zorn (born 1953): Forbidden Fruit for voice, string quartet & turntables (1987), Cat o' Nine Tails (or, Tex Avery Directs the Marquis de Sade) (1988), The Dead Man (1990), Memento Mori (1992), Kol Nidre (1996), Necronomicon (2003), The Alchemist (2011)
• Beat Furrer (born 1954): has written three (1984, 1988, 2004)
• Arturo Rodas (born 1954) Ecuadorian composer, A - B - C - D for string quartet (1989); Fuga Atonal II for string quartet (2008) ^[22]
• Sinan Savaskan (born 1954): has written three quartets ; his third quartet Panic in Needle Park is for string quartet and for channel electro acoustic music
• Carl Vine (born 1954) Australian composer, five string quartets to date: Knips Suite (String Quartet No. 1) (1979); String Quartet No. 2 (1984); String Quartet No. 3 (1994); String Quartet No. 4 (2004); String Quartet No. 5 (2010)
• John Woolrich (born 1954): has written two quartets
• Pascal Dusapin (born 1955): has written seven quartets (1982, 1989, 1992, 1997, 2005, 2009, 2010); his sixth quartet is for string quartet and orchestra
• Nigel Keay (born 1955) two quartets (1983, 1995) [26]
• Don Rath Jr (born 1956) : Prolific composer for the stringed instruments, many quartets.
• Bob Ostertag (born 1957): All the Rage (1992)
• Gerhard Präsent (born 1957): has written four quartets: Music for Strings (1977/78); La Tâche (1994/95), Missa (2001); Big Apple (2007/08) - #2, 3 and 4 recorded by the ALEA Ensemble
• Vahktang Kakhidze (born 1958): String Quartet (1978/79)
• Rodney Waschka II (born 1958): String Quartet: Laredo (1999) String Quartet: Ha! Fortune (2003) both recorded by the Nevsky String Quartet on Capstone Records.
• Julia Wolfe (born 1958): released an album of string quartets, The String Quartets: Dig Deep, Four Marys, and Early that summer (1991)
• Lawrence Dillon (born 1959): Invisible Cities String Quartet Cycle - String Quartet No. 1: Jests and Tenderness (1998); String Quartet No. 2: Flight (2002); String Quartet No. 3: Air (2005); String Quartet No. 4: The Infinite Sphere (2009); String Quartet No. 5: Through the Night (2009); String Quartet No. 6: REM (2014)
• David Johnstone (born 1959): 9 Romantic European Pieces for String Quartet (2004) recorded by the Gala Quartet for Creighton's Collection ^[23]
• Patrick Jonathan (born 1959): String Quartet (2006)
• James MacMillan (born 1959): Scottish composer, three string quartets
• Shigeru Kan-no (born 1959): Japanese composer. wrote 10 String Quartets up to 2008.
• Robert Scott Thompson (born 1959): American composer. Dissipative Structures for String Quartet (1981), premiere by Harvard String Quartet, Cabrillo Music Festival. First Prize in open competition.

Born in the 1960s[edit]

• Aaron Jay Kernis (born 1960): 2 string quartets, No. 1 Musica celestis (1990), No. 2 Musica instrumentalis (1998). He received the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for Quartet No. 2.
• William Susman (born 1960): Four string quartets.
• Ezequiel Viñao (born 1960): wrote three quartets, as of 2009: La Noche de las Noches (1989); The Loss and the Silence (2004) and Sirocco Dust (2009)
• Jorge Grundman (born 1961): Fragment for String Quartet (2004), Surviving a Son's Suicide (2009), God's Sketches for String Quartet, Soprano and Mallets (2012), on Blondes and Detectives. Cliché Music for String Quartet (2012), A Mortuis Resurgere: The Resurrection of Chris for Soprano and String Quartet (2013) and The Propagation of Faith (2014).
• Lowell Liebermann (born 1961): has so far written four string quartets: String Quartet No. 1, Op. 5 (1979), String Quartet No. 2, Op. 60 (1998), String Quartet No. 3, Op. 102 (2007) and String Quartet No. 4, Op. 103 (2007)