In a sad coincidence, Del Sol String Quartet is both performing live and publishing a recording of Peter Sculthorpe's string quartets, just as news arrives of the composer's death.
Sculthorpe, Australia’s most famous composer, died on Aug. 8, at age 85. He was described by Peter McCallum of the Sydney Morning Herald as
… the first Australian composer to create a distinctly Australian sound and style that communicated to a wide local and international audience. His genial influence on students and composers encouraged generations of composers to look inward rather than abroad to discover their own voice.
Del Sol teamed up with didjeridu virtuoso Stephen Kent to bring to life the Sculthorpe quartets. Performance dates are Sept. 20-21 in San Francisco; Sept. 28 at Cabrillo College, Aptos; Nov. 9-10 at the Festival of New American Music, California State University, Sacramento.