Widely considered one of Europe’s leading quartets, the Hagen Quartett makes a long-awaited Center debut in a rare visit to the West Coast. The Hagen Quartett was founded in 1981. Its members include Lukas Hagen and Rainer Schmidt, violins; Veronika Hagen, viola and Clemens Hagen, cello. Its career has been rewarded with many prizes in chamber music competitions and an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon. The group is able to perform virtually an unlimited quartet repertoire from which the distinctive profile of the Hagens has emerged. Collaborations with artistic personalities such as Nikolaus Harnoncourt and György Kurtág are as important to the Hagen Quartett as its concert appearances with performers including Maurizio Pollini, Mitsuko Uchida, Sabine Meyer, Krystian Zimerman, Heinrich Schiff and Jörg Widmann.