List of string quartet composers

Born in the 17th century

Georg Philipp Telemann (1681–1767): An example is Sonata á Violino I, Violino II, Viola e Violono in A major TWV 40:200. There is an expanded version for chamber string orchestra.

Born 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).

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).

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])

Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (1739–1799): composed 13 string quartets and published 12. He also composed several trios and quintets.

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.

Gaetano Brunetti (1744–1798): Italian composer active in the Madrid area, wrote at least 50 string quartets, but also 47 trios, 65 quintets and 12 sextets

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): eleven string quartets.

Bartolomeo Campagnoli (1751–1827): 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): twenty-three string quartets, including the six so-called Haydn Quartets (1782–1785), generally reckoned to be his best, the Hoffmeister Quartet (1786), and the Prussian Quartets (1789–1790).

Joseph Martin Kraus (1756–1792): sixteen 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.

Ignace Pleyel (1757 – 1831): Student of Haydn, wrote 70 string quartets.

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): 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): six string quartets (1814–1837).

Jan Ladislav Dussek (1760–1812): Beethoven's rival, published three string quartets, op. 60

Antonín Vranický / Anton Wranitzky (1761–1820): thirty 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): eleven complete string quartets, two sets of three quartets each Op. 1 & 25, and single quartets Opp. 12, 37, 39, 59, 60.

Andreas Romberg (1767–1821): twenty-nine 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): 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): at least ten quartets.

Anton Reicha (1770–1836): at least thirty-seven string quartets (14 of them newly discovered), of which the eight 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

Joseph Wolfl (1773–1812): an Austrian student of Michael Haydn and Leopold Mozart and a rival of Beethoven composed 13 string quartets: op.4 (4) op. 30 (3) and op. 51 (6)

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.

Joseph Küffner (1776–1856): at least five string quartets (Op. 41 nos. 1–3, Op. 52, Op. 178)

Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778–1837): 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

Carl Eberwein (1786–1868): at least one string quartet, Op. 4, in A major

Alexander Alyabyev (1787–1851): at least two string quartets, plus one incomplete (see this concert notice)

Franz Xaver Gebel (1787–1843): at least three string quartets

Friedrich Ernst Fesca (1789–1826): sixteen string quartets

Born in the 1790s

Carl Czerny (1791–1857): wrote at least 20 and as many as 40 string quartets, most never published, existing in manuscript form only. Several have seen recent recordings.

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 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): as many as 13 string quartets

Charles Hommann (1803–1872?): three string quartets (by 1855)

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): 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): 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): 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. 7 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): three string quartets

Salvatore Pappalardo (1817–1884): four 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): 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): 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): 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): one string quartet (1862)

Carl Reinecke (1824–1910): 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): string quartets (including No. 3, Op. 15b in A minor and No. 4, Op. 47 in D minor)

Anton Rubinstein (1829–1894): 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): 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): three string quartets, the first two in 1879 and the final one in 1881

Felix Draeseke (1835–1913): 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 string orchestra. There is also a quartet movement in B♭ major from 1865.

Johan Svendsen (1840–1911): one string quartet, his Op. 1

Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904): fourteen string quartets, out of which number twelve, the American, is the best known

Giovanni Sgambati (1841–1914): two string quartets, one in D minor (1864), and one in D♭ major, his Op. 17 (1882)

Elfrida Andrée (1841–1929): 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): two string quartets, the second being unfinished

Ján Levoslav Bella (1843–1936): three string quartets, in E minor (1871), C minor (1880) and B♭ minor (1887)

Georg Wilhelm Rauchenecker (1844–1906): 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): two 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 and several in manuscript predating no.1)

Alexander Mackenzie (1847–1935): one string quartet in G (1868)

Hubert Parry (1848–1918): three string quartets (unpublished during his lifetime)

Wilhelm Fitzenhagen (1848–1890): one string quartet, in D minor, Op. 23 (c. 1870)

Benjamin Godard (1849–1895): 3 string quartets

Born in the 1850s

Zdeněk Fibich (1850–1900): 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): 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): three string quartets

Charles Villiers Stanford (1852–1924): eight string quartets (1891–1919)

Leoš Janáček (1854–1928): two string quartets, known as The Kreutzer Sonata and Intimate Letters

Ernest Chausson (1855–1899): 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): 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): 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): 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. Birnbach, 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): 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): 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)

Felix Blumenfeld (1863-1931): one string quartet, Op. 26 in F Major (1898).

Emánuel Moór (1863–1931): two string quartets, op. 59 in A and op. 87, and other works for string quartet

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): three string quartets

Guy Ropartz (1864–1955): six quartets (1893–1951)

Richard Strauss (1864–1949): one string quartet

Albéric Magnard (1865–1914): one string quartet (Op. 16, 1903)

Gustav Jenner (1865–1920): three string quartets (1907, 1910 and 1911 — [9])

Carl Nielsen (1865–1931): four published string quartets, also an early quartet and quartet movements

Alexander Glazunov (1865–1936): 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): two string quartets: in A major, Op. 8, and in A minor, Op. 60 (published in 1890 and 1914 respectively)

Jean Sibelius (1865–1957): 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)

Swan Hennessy (1866–1929): four numbered string quartets (No. 1, Op. 46 [1912]; No. 2, Op. 49 [1920]; No. 3, Op. 61 [1926]; No. 4, Op. 75 [1930]); a Sérénade Op. 65 (1925) for string quartet; and a version for soprano and string quartet (1928) of the Trois Chansons espagnoles Op. 42b (originally with piano, 1921).

Charles Wood (1866–1926): eight string quartets (1885, 1893, 1912, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1917, and Variations on an Irish Folk Song, 1917), collectively published by Oxford University Press in 1929.

Ewald Straesser (1867–1933): 5 string quartets (publication dates 1901, 1901, 1913, 1920, 1927)

Amy Beach (1867–1944): 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): seventeen string quartets written from 1898 to 1947

Albert Roussel (1869–1937): one string quartet (in D major, his Op. 45, 1931–1932)

Hans Pfitzner (1869–1949): 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)

Florent Schmitt (1870–1958): String Quartet in G, Op. 112 (1947)

Louis Vierne (1870–1937): one string quartet (1894)

Henry Kimball Hadley (1871–1937): 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)

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943): two early quartets, both never finished: No. 1, ca. 1890 and No. 2, ca. 1896

Max Reger (1873–1916): 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): two string quartets (1896 and 1913), the first entitled From the Salvation Army

Arnold Schoenberg (1874–1951): 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): three string quartets

Reinhold Glière (1875–1956): 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): string quartet in A minor (1919)

Erkki Melartin (1875–1937): 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. All 3 published by Frieder Latzina-Verlag of Karlsruhe in 2001–2002.

Richard Wetz (1875–1935): two string quartets: in F minor, Op. 43, in E minor, Op. 49

Erno Dohnányi (1877–1960): three string quartets (1899, 1906, 1926)

Lucien Durosoir (1878–1955): three string quartets (1920, 1922, 1933–34)

Joseph Holbrooke (1878–1958): 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)

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)

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)

Born in the 1880s

Ernest Bloch (1880–1959): 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): six string quartets widely regarded as being the finest quartets of the first half of the 20th century

George Enescu (1881–1955): 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): thirteen (1907–1949)

Nikolai Roslavets (1881–1944): five string quartets (1913, 1915, 1920, 1929–31, 1942 [13]), and a minuet (1907); only nos. 1, 3 & 5, and the minuet, have been published as of 2015

Ignatz Waghalter (1881–1949): one string quartet, in D major, Op. 3

Karl Weigl (1881–1949): eight string quartets: No. 1 in C minor (1903 or 1905); No. 2 in E (with viola d'amore) (1906); No. 3 in A major (1909); No. 4 in D minor (1924); No. 5 in G major (1933); No. 6 in C (1939); No. 7 in F minor (1942); No. 8 in D (1949)

Zoltán Kodály (1882–1967): two string quartets (1908 and 1917)

Joseph Marx (1882–1964): three string quartets ([14]) not counting the original version of one and a draft.

Gian Francesco Malipiero (1882–1973): eight string quartets (1920–1964)

Artur Schnabel (1882–1951): 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 (mature) string quartets: No. 1 in G major (1918), No. 2 in E minor (1925) and No. 3 in F major (1936) and also 2 quartets from 1902

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): 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): two string quartets (Opp. 23, 1913, and 37, 1923) and a movement for string quartet (1908).

Kurt Atterberg (1887–1974): three string quartets

Ernst Toch (1887–1964): 13 string quartets, the first five now lost, and a brief Dedication for quartet.

Fartein Valen (1887–1952): two string quartets

Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887–1959): seventeen string quartets between 1915 and 1957

Matthijs Vermeulen (1888–1967): one string quartet (1960–61)

Johanna Beyer (1888–1944): at least four (1934, 1936, ?, 1943)

Born in the 1890s

Olga Diener (1890–1963): at least thirty-two string quartets

Andres Isasi (1890–1940): eight string quartets

Bohuslav Martinů (1890–1959): 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): two string quartets (1930 and 1941)

Arthur Honegger (1892–1955): three string quartets, in C minor (1917), D major (1936), and E major (1937)

Darius Milhaud (1892–1974): eighteen, the fourteenth and fifteenth of which may be played as an octet

Hilding Rosenberg (1892–1985): twelve (No. 1, 1920 revised 1955 to No. 12, 1957)

Germaine Tailleferre (1892–1983): one quartet (1917–19)

Arthur Lourié (1892–1966): three (no. 1/1915, no. 2/1923 and no.3 {Suite}/1924)

Alois Hába (1893–1973): 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): 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): two string quartets (1931 and 1932)

Henry Cowell (1897–1965): four

John Fernström (1897–1961): 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): two, both in 1957

Quincy Porter (1897–1966): nine (No. 1 in E minor, 1922–3; No. 9, 1958.)

Alexandre Tansman (1897–1986): nine (one lost, replaced by Triptych) ([18] for most of that, Fanfare review of a recording for the rest)

Hanns Eisler (1898–1962): one string quartet, 1937 ([19])

George Gershwin (1898–1937): 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): 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): four quartets

Herbert Griffiths (1899–1969): one String quartet in B minor (1920)

Alexander Tcherepnin (1899–1977): two quartets (1922, 1926)

Randall Thompson (1899–1984): two quartets, in D minor (about 1941- possibly earlier, see Library of Congress listing?) and G major (1967)

Born in the 1900s

George Antheil (1900–1959): three quartets (1925, 1927, 1948), plus two smaller collections

Aaron Copland (1900–1990): four pieces for string quartet (1921, unpublished; 1923, 1923, 1928)

Ernst Krenek (1900–1991): eight, covering a wide range of 20th. Century musical styles.

Otto Luening (1900–1996): 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): two mature numbered quartets (1935, 1956) and other works for string quartet (early quartets from 1925 and 1926; 6 Epigrams, Op.33 from 1962).

Emil Hlobil (1901–1987): 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)

Edmund Rubbra (1901–1986): 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): nine quartets (1923–1963) [21]

Stefan Wolpe (1902–1972): string quartet (1968–1969)

William Walton (1902–1983): two string quartets (1922 and 1947)

Günter Raphael (1903–1960): six quartets (1924–1954)

Nikos Skalkottas (1904–1949): wrote many; 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): two string quartets (1928 and 1945)

Arthur Dennington (1904–1988): string quartet (1926)

Karl Amadeus Hartmann (1905–1963): two quartets (1933, 1945–46)

Alan Rawsthorne (1905–1971): four quartets (1935–1965)

Verdina Shlonsky (1905-1990): one string quartet

Eduard Tubin (1905–1982): one string quartet

William Alwyn (1905–1985): 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): five (1944, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1984)

Michael Tippett (1905–1998): five numbered string quartets plus two unnumbered youthful works

Klaus Egge (1906–1979): several

Benjamin Frankel (1906–1973): five (1944–1965)

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975): fifteen string quartets

Elisabeth Lutyens (1906–1984): thirteen

Ross Lee Finney (1906–1997): 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): 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

Samuel Barber (1910–1981): 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): twenty-four string quartets (1931–1986)

Nino Rota (1911–1979): one string quartet (1948–1954)

William Schuman (1910–1992): 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)

Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000): American composer of Armenian heritage wrote 4 string quartets, recorded by the Shanghai Quartet amongst others. http://www.hovhaness.com/hovhaness-chamber-works.html

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): three string quartets (1945, c. 1948, 1987), second incomplete

Benjamin Britten (1913–1976): 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): three quartets, the third his Op. 33 (1988)

Witold Lutosławski (1913–1994): one string quartet (1964)

Robert Schollum (1913–1987): two string quartets (Op.40 in C, 1949; Op.72, 1966).

David Diamond (1915–2005): ten string quartets, from 1940 to 1974

George Perle (1915–2009): eleven, of which five (1–4, 6) were withdrawn

Vincent Persichetti (1915–1987): four string quartets (1939, 1944, 1959, 1972)

Milton Babbitt (1916–2011): five abstract, densely serialistic quartets in the mid-20th century, and a sixth premiered in 2002

Henri Dutilleux (1916–2013): one quartet, Ainsi la nuit (1976)

Einar Englund (1916–1999): 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): three (1949, 1957, 1969), plus Adagio and Scherzo for String Quartet (1991)

Lou Harrison (1917–2003): String Quartet Set (1979)

Isang Yun (1917–1995): 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) 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): four (1945, 1947, 1962, 1984)

Phyllis Gummer (1919-2005): four string quartets

Leon Kirchner (1919–2009): four (1949, 1958, 1967, 2007); the third, which includes a tape part, won the Pulitzer Prize for Music, 1967

Mieczysław Weinberg (1919–1996): seventeen, from his Op. 2 (1937 rev. 1986) to Op. 146 (1987) [24]

Born in the 1920s

Peter Racine Fricker (1920–1990): 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): five string quartets (1942, 1944, 1953, 1970, 1982)

Karel Husa (1921-2016): four quartets; the third quartet won the Pulitzer Prize for Music, 1969

Andrew Imbrie (1921–2007): at least five (fifth written in 1987)

Joonas Kokkonen (1921–1996): three string quartets (1959, 1966, 1976)

Robert Simpson (1921–1997): fifteen string quartets between 1952 and 1991

Iannis Xenakis (1922–2001): 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): two string quartets (1941 and 1951)

Daniel Pinkham (1923–2006): at least one string quartet

Mel Powell (1923–1998): Filigree Setting (1959), String Quartet (1982)

Lejaren Hiller (1924–1994): seven

Ezra Laderman (1924–2015): twelve string quartets

Luigi Nono (1924–1990): Fragmente-Stille, an Diotima for string quartet (1980), inspired by the poetry of Friedrich Hölderlin

Veniamin Basner (1925–1996): 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.

Luciano Berio (1925–2003): Quatuor No. 1 (1956), dedicated to Bruno Maderna; Sincronie (1963–64); Notturno (1993); Glosse (1997)

Pierre Boulez (1925–2016): Livre pour quatuor (1949), then withdrew it, recasting some parts later as Livre pour cordes; lately, ensembles have been showing interest in the work as a whole, with Parts I, II, III, V and VI recorded recently

Bertold Hummel (1925–2002): 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 (1925–2015): four quartets

Vladimir Shainsky (born 1925): at least one string quartet

Boris Tchaikovsky (1925–1996): six (1954–1976)

Earle Brown (1926–2002): one quartet (1965)

Paul Cooper (1926–1996): six quartets

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): five

Ben Johnston (born 1926): 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): String Quartet, Op. 1, Hommage à Mihály András (12 Microludes), Op. 13, Officium breve in memorium Andreae Szervánszky, Op. 28, 6 Moments musicaux Op 44 (2005); plus, the shorter works Aus der Ferne III (1991), Aus der Ferne V (1999), Hommage à Jacob Obrecht (2004-2005), Arioso - Hommage à Walter Levin 85 (2009)

Carlos Veerhoff (1926–2011): String quartet op.1 (1949)

Thomas Wilson (1927–2001): 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

Samuel Adler (born 1928): ten quartets; No.6 includes a soprano part

Thea Musgrave (born 1928): one string quartet (1958)

Einojuhani Rautavaara (1928–2016): four string quartets

Ezra Sims (1928–2015): First Quartet (1953); String Quartet No. 2 (1962) (1974) (really a quintet for winds and strings), Third Quartet (1962), Fourth Quartet

Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928–2007): Helikopter-Streichquartett (from Mittwoch aus 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, fourteenth, sixteenth, and eighteenth quartets include optional parts for didgeridu; the thirteenth includes soprano voice

Born in the 1930s

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): four string quartets (1971, 1987, 1987, 1994), the last with tape

Mauricio Kagel (1931–2008): five

Ib Nørholm (born 1931): 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.

Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen (1932–2016): fourteen quartets; the tenth and eleventh also have optional vocal ensemble parts; also the Concerto Grosso for string quartet and instrument ensemble (1990/2006)

Per Nørgård (born 1932): ten

Alexander Goehr (born 1932): four string quartets (Op. 5 (1957), Op. 23 (1967), Op. 37 (1976), Op. 52 (1990))

John Kinsella (born 1932): five numbered string quartets (1960, 1968, 1977, 1993, 2013), and On Hearing Purcell and Shostakovitch at Bantry House: June 2008 (2009)

Seóirse Bodley (born 1933): four string quartets (1968, 1992, 2004, 2007)

John Exton (1933-2009): seven String quartets (No.1: 1957, No.2: 1961, No.3: 1969, No.4: 1972, No.5: 1972, No.6: 1974, No.7: 1975)

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): three string quartets (1960, 1968, 2008); Der Unterbrochene Gedanke (1984)

R. Murray Schafer (born 1933): thirteen string quartets, as of 2015; the seventh quartet includes a soprano part, the fourth and ninth include tape parts. Diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in 2015, Schafer composed the brief String Quartet No. 13, which he subtitled 'Alzheimer’s Masterpiece', for the Quatuor Molinari.

Harrison Birtwistle (born 1934): Nine Movements for String Quartet (1991–96), String Quartet: The Tree of Strings (2007); Hoquetus Irvinus (2013)(short work for the Arditti Quartet's fortieth anniversary); String Quartet No 3: The Silk House Sequences (2015)

Peter Maxwell Davies (1934-2016): 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 and the most recent in 2003.

Roger Reynolds (born 1934): Tetra, Coconino . . . A Shattered Landscape

Alfred Schnittke (1934–1998): 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): 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): 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): three quartets

Philip Glass (born 1937): three string quartets as a student, seven mature string quartets (1966, 1983, 1985, 1989, 1991, 2013, 2014), music for string quartet for the 1931 film Dracula (1998), and the suite from Bent (2009)

Valentin Silvestrov (born 1937): 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): 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): 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): four, plus the short Divertimento and Josquiniana, in six movements based on Josquin des Prés

Leo Brouwer (born 1939): Cuban composer, has written five. String Quartet No 1 Homage to Bela Bartok (1961), Rem Tene Verba Sequentur (1969), Cuarteto de Cuerdas No. 3 (1997), Cuarteto de Cuerdas Nº 4 Rem tene verba sequentur II (2007) y Cuarteto de Cuerdas No 5 (2011)

Louis Andriessen (born 1939): two

Jonathan Harvey (1939–2012): four

Heinz Holliger (born 1939): 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 (1939–2015): seven

Tomáš Svoboda (born 1939): ten string quartets as of 2009

Born in the 1940s

Richard Wilson (born 1941): five as of 2008

Chick Corea (born 1941): one specifically for the Orion String Quartet in 2004.

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; No. 4 is for quartet plus eight other quartets (live or pre-recorded) circling the audience

Gavin Bryars (born 1943): three (1986 (Between the National and the Bristol), 1990, 1998)

Krzysztof Meyer (born 1943): thirteen (1963, 1969, 1971, 1974, 1977, 1981, 1985, 1985, 1989, 1994, 2001, 2005, 2010)

Joanna Bruzdowicz (born 1943): two (1983, 1988)

Julio Estrada (born 1943): "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): three 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): five string quartets

Heinz Winbeck (born 1946): three string quartets (as of 2011), entitled Tempi capricciosi Tempi notturni (both 1979) and Jagdquartett (Hunting quartet) (1984)

John Adams (born 1947): John's Book of Alleged Dances in 1994 for the Kronos Quartet; String Quartet No. 1 (2008); Fellow Traveler (2010); Absolute Jest (2011)(string quartet and orchestra); Second Quartet (2015)

Salvatore Sciarrino (born 1947): 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): six quartets; the fourth includes a part for a speaker; the sixth includes a part for a soprano

Julia Tsenova (1948–2010): String Quartet No. 1 (2003)

Nestor de Hollanda Cavalcanti (born 1949): three string quartets, entitled Quarteto Agônico No. 1 (1975), Louvor - Quarteto de Cordas No. 1 (1996) and Honra - Quarteto de Cordas No. 2 (2002).

David L. Post (born 1949): 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)

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 Signum Quartet will premiere String Quartet No.12 in November 2016

Born in the 1950s

Vladimir Anisimoff (born 1950): String Quartet Chaconne (1974)

James Dillon (born 1950): has written seven quartets

Alistair Hinton (born 1950): String Quartet (1999)

Lorenzo Ferrero (born 1951): set of twelve string quartets entitled Tempi di quartetto (1996–98); Five Aztec Gods (2005)

Aleksander Lasoń (born 1951): 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), String Quartet No. 3 (2010), String Quartet No. 4 (2012)

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): 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): Ten quartets, plus the short LAIR, written for the Arditti Quartet's fortieth anniversary. The JACK Quartet premiered Haas' String Quartet No.9 and the Arditti Quartet premiered String Quartet No.10, both in November 2016. Quartets 3, 9, and 10 were meant to be performed in absolute darkness.

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); Pandora's Box (2014)(includes soprano part), The Remedy of Fortune (2015)

Beat Furrer (born 1954): three (1984, 1988, 2004)

Arturo Rodas (born 1954) Ecuadorian composer, A - B - C - D (1989); Fuga Atonal II (2008)

Sinan Savaskan (born 1954): 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): two quartets

David A. Jaffe (born 1955): five quartets: Telegram to the President (1984); Grass Valley Fire (1988); Quiet Places (1996); Fox Hollow (2013); Eight O's in Wooloomooloo (2014, with contralto voice)

Pascal Dusapin (born 1955): 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]

Miguel del Aguila (born 1957): three quartets: Presto II (1993); Life is a Dream (1995), recorded by Camerata San Antonio CD Salon Buenos Aires

Bob Ostertag (born 1957): All the Rage (1992)

Gerhard Präsent (born 1957): 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

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)

Allan Loucks (born 1959): Prolific composer, many string quartets.

David Johnstone (born 1959): 9 Romantic European Pieces for String Quartet (2004) recorded by the Gala Quartet for Creighton's Collection

Patrick Jonathan (born 1959): String Quartet (2006)

James MacMillan (born 1959): Scottish composer, three string quartets

John Palmer (born 1959): British composer, First String Quartet (Jeu de mort) (1986, rev. 2016); Second String Quartet (Dream) (1996)

Shigeru Kan-no (born 1959): Japanese composer. ten string quartets as of 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

Aaron Jay Kernis (born 1960): three string quartets: No. 1 Musica celestis (1990), No. 2 Musica instrumentalis (1998), No. 3 River. He received the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for Quartet No. 2.

William Susman (born 1960): four string quartets.

David Loucks (born 1960): prolific composer; many string quartets.

Ezequiel Viñao (born 1960): three quartets, as of 2009: La Noche de las Noches (1989); The Loss and the Silence (2004) and Sirocco Dust (2009)

Nicolas Bacri (born 1961): nine string quartets: String Quartet No. 1 op.1 "Fantaisie" (1980), String Quartet No. 2 op.5 "5 Pieces" (1982), String Quartet No. 3 op. 18 "Esquisses pour un Tombeau" (1985-89), String Quartet No. 4 op. 42 "Omaggio a Beethoven" (1989-94), String Quartet No. 5 op. 57 (1997), String Quartet No. 6 op. 97 (2005-06), String Quartet No. 7 op. 101 "Variations sérieuses" (2006-07), String Quartet No. 8 op. 112 "Omaggio a Haydn" (2008-09), String Quartet No. 9 op. 140 "Canto di speranza", 2015)

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): five string quartets: String Quartet No. 1, Op. 5 (1979), String Quartet No. 2, Op. 60 (1998), String Quartet No. 3, Op. 102 (2007), String Quartet No. 4, Op. 103 (2007), and String Quartet No.5 Op. 126 (2014)

Edgar Meyer (born 1961): released an album mostly of string quartets, Short Trip Home (1999)

Michael Torke (born 1961): Great Crossing (1996), Chalk (1992), Corner in Manhattan (2000).

Jennifer Higdon (born 1962): seven string quartets: Autumn's Cricket (1987), Voices (1993), Sky Quartet (1997 revised 2001), Amazing Grace (2003), Impressions (2003), Southern Harmony (2003), and An Exultation of Larks (2005).

Eric Sawyer (born 1962) : American composer; 3 string quartets. Album: Albany Records, 2005, String Quartet 2 (1999), String Quartet 3 (2002).

Laura Schwendinger (born 1962): "String Quartet in Three Movements" (2001)

Fredrik Sixten (born 1962): Chaconne (2007) recorded by the Swedish radio. "Contrasts" for string quartet (1984)

Andersen Viana (born 1962): five quartets (1984,1990,1990,1996,1998)

Graham Waterhouse (born 1962): composed String quartets (Waterhouse), including Hungarian Polyphony (1986), Chinese Whispers (2010), Prophetiae Sibyllarum and Alcatraz (2014), among others

Graham Fitkin (born 1963): Servant (1992); A Small Quartet (1993); Another Small Quartet (1993); Pawn (2005); Inside (2006); String (2008); Informal Dance (2010)

Sophie Lacaze (born 1963): Het Lam Gods (2005)

Matthew Davidson (born 1964): three string quartets: Music for String Quartet (1988); I Had Five Long years (1991); Quartetto dell'Arte (2012)

Ian Wilson (born 1964): seventeen string quartets, as of 2016

Roberto Carnevale (born 1966): Italian composer. Quartuccio (1996); Il mio quartetto (2002).

Juan Antonio Cuellar (born 1966): Colombian composer. "String Quartet No. 1: Portraits and Landscapes" (1998)

Vanessa Lann (born 1968): "Lullabye for a Young Girl Dreaming" (1990); "Landscape of a Soul's Remembering" (2006)

James Francis Brown (born 1960): British composer. One string quartet (2010)

Alan Mills (born c.1967): Northern Irish composer. One string quartet with added soprano or countertenor part: The Birth of Orpheus (2003)

Peter Fribbins (Born 1969): British composer. Two string quartets: "String Quartet No. 1 - I have the serpent brought" (1990–98 rev. 2002-04); "String Quartet No. 2 - After Cromer" (2006)

Eric Sessler (born 1969): American composer. String Quartet (2012–13)

Born in the 1970s

Donnacha Dennehy (born 1970): Irish composer, Ecstasis, full stop (1999), Counting (2000), Pushpulling (2007), Stamp (2008), One Hundred Goodbyes (2011).

Ralph Farris (born 1970): American composer, 2fer (2008), Wreck'd (2009), Factions (2013)

David Horne (born 1970): Surrendering to the Stream (1993), Undulations (1996), Subterfuge (), String Quartet No. 3 "Flight from the Labyrinth" (2005), String Quartet No. 4 (2006).

Richard Carrick (born 1971): French-American composer, Adagios for Strings (2010).

Yitzhak Yedid (born 1971): Israeli composer, 'Visions, Fantasies and Dances' 60 minutes in 7 parts (2007)

Craig Walsh (born 1971): American composer, 'String Quartet No. 1' (2010)

Vykintas Baltakas (born 1972): Lithuanian composer, "b(ell tree)" (2007).

Edward Top (born 1972): two string quartets (1998, 2002).

Yalil Guerra (born 1973): Cuba-American composer, two string quartets: String Quartet No. 1, "A Mill Guerras Solo" [27] and String Quartet No. 2 [28]

Henry Vega (born 1973): American composer living in The Hague, The motion of arrayed emotion (2011), for string quartet and computers.

Jörg Widmann (born 1973): German composer, five one-movement string quartets (1997–2005) that form a cycle

Jefferson Friedman (born 1974): American composer, three string quartets (1996, 1999, 2005)

R. Luke DuBois (born 1975): American Composer, Hard Data (2009)

David Philip Hefti (born 1975): Swiss composer, Ph(r)asen – String Quartet No. 1 (2007); Guggisberg-Variationen – String Quartet No. 2 (2008); Mobile - String Quartet No. 3 (2011); con fuoco - String Quartet No. 4 (2011)

Kasia Glowicka (born 1976): Polish composer, "Springs and Summers" (1999), for string quartet and countertenor, music set to Shakespeare's sonnets

David Flynn (born 1977): Irish composer, three string quartets to date. String Quartet No. 1 "Fairground Attractions" (2003), String Quartet No. 2 "The Cranning" (2004–2005), String Quartet No. 3 "The Keening" (2007), Flynn received the 2004 Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival Composers Award for "Slip" the first movement of Quartet No. 2

Jimmy Lopez (born 1978): Peruvian composer, string quartet "La Caresse du Couteau" (2004)

Joseph Hallman (born 1979): Philadelphia composer, many string quartets for multiple groups, including "the not-so-magnificent cadaver", "musings", and "compliments". Also notable are his transcriptions of contemporary pop songs for gospel singer and string quartet.

Dinesh Subasinghe (born 1979): Sri Lankan composer, string quartet "Night Before the Battle" (2011)

Born in the 1980s

Paul McCorriston (born 1980): Canadian Composer, String Quartet No. 1 (2004)

Richard Zarou (born 1981): American composer, String Quartet "Retreating From the Light" (2003)

Mohammed Fairouz (born 1985): American composer. Lamentation and Satire (2008), Chorale Fantasy (2010) and The Named Angels (2012).