the lindsay string quartet' (or the lindsays) was a british string quartet from 1965 to 2005. the quartet first performed at the royal academy of music in 1965 to compete for a prize and set out to make the string quartets of bartÃ³k and beethoven the centre of their repertoire. in 1967, the quartet was appointed to be leverhulme scholars at keele university, and in 1970, it changed its name from the cropper to the lindsay string quartet, naming itself after lord lindsay, the founder of keele university. 1971 brought a change in second violin to ronald birks. the quartet gained a gramophone award for the late beethoven quartets in 1984. roger bigley left the quartet in 1985 to be replaced by robin ireland. bigley then became assistant principal viola of the bbc philharmonic orchestra before becoming assistant head of strings at the rncm. in 1974, they became quartet-in-residence at sheffield university and five years later held a similar position at manchester university, where they performed a regular concert season, directed seminars, and coached chamber ensembles. the quartet presented festivals each year at the studio theatre in the crucible theatre, sheffield, which featured many famous local and international musicians, and travelled widely throughout the world. in 2005, after 39 years, the quartet announced their intended retirement the following year. they then performed a very successful series of farewell concerts throughout the world, culminating in four final concerts in their home town of sheffield in july 2005. individual members are now pursuing separate musical ideas. the quartet have produced an extensive list of recordings, including a highly acclaimed beethoven cycle, and substantial parts of the haydn, mozart, schubert and dvorak repertoires. leader peter cropper was the founding artistic director of music in the round, a charitable organisation he founded in the 1980s, that promotes chamber music concerts in sheffield and nationally. the lindsays formed the core of music in the round's activity for over twenty years, until their retirement. ==members== *peter cropper (first violin) *ronald birks (second violin) *bernard gregor-smith (cello) *roger bigley (viola - 1965 to 1985) *robin ireland (viola - 1985 to 2005) ==references== * bigley, roger (1981). beethoven string quartets op.59 'razumovsky, cd liner notes. academy sound and vision ltd. ==external links== *peter cropper *ronald birks *robin ireland *bernard gregor-smith *beethoven string quartet in b-flat major, op. 130 - 5. cavatina *[http://www.youtube
1965_establishments_in_the_United_Kingdom English_string_quartets Musical_groups_disestablished_in_2005 Musical_groups_established_in_1965