A hippie string quartet? That's what it seemed like in 1973 when four youngsters from Seattle formed the Kronos Quartet (they then moved to San Francisco). In the 45 years since, they have recorded dozens of albums of music from the Renaissance to the avant-garde, from the native musical traditions of at least four continents, and from some of the more than 900 original works that they have commissioned.
Our spotlight is on the career of the Kronos this Thursday -- and that has been one long, strange trip.