Hanspeter Kyburz works with three fundamental formative principles in his String Quartet. Soloistic, polyphonic and "integratively" i.e. homogeneously structured tutti runs alternate with one another, whereby the form does not follow a fixed pattern. Multifaceted correspondences and motivic relationships result from the interplay of the individual sections. The work was given its much-applauded first performance on 9 September 2004 at the Berliner Festwochen. The composer radically revised his quartet after the first performances. From January 2005 onwards, all concerts featuring the work will be based on this new version.