| Over the years, he has led big bands and played with trios, quartets, and other types of groups as well as playing solo. |
| These include lieder, thirty string quartets and six symphonies, plus numerous overtures and choral works. |
| They approach the piece like a musical score, mingling solo parts with duets, trios and quartets. |
| However, it is not a complete cycle, for it was recorded before Shostakovich had composed his 14th and 15th quartets. |
| He originally thought in terms of a theatrical setting for the whole cycle of fifteen quartets, but that proved too grandiose. |
| Barbershop singing originated in the US at the turn of the last century, when quartets would sing in real barbers' shops. |
