Turtle Island Quartet bringing Jimi Hendrix tribute

The Turtle Island Quartet, which specializes in chamber music for strings, will celebrate the hits of legendary rocker Jimi Hendrix with its show titled “Have You Ever Been … ?” on Tuesday, Oct. 18, at 7 p.m. at CSC’s Memorial Hall.

The latest venture by the two-time Grammy-winning quartet tackles music of and inspired by Hendrix, who gained stardom in the late 1960s as an edgy guitarist, songwriter and performer.

Exploring a wide variety of music is nothing new to the Turtle Island Quartet. In addition to the music of Jimi Hendrix, the group also has produced a Grammy-winning recording based on the music of jazz legend John Coltrane.

“Through their exploration of jazz, classical, American vernacular and world music styles, the Turtle Island Quartet has taken its audiences on a journey through many musical genres, eras and places, including the American landscape, Latin America, Europe and India,” states the group’s publicity material.

The California-based Turtle Island Quartet is led by founder David Balakrishnan, who has been a Hendrix fan since his teenage years. The other members are co-founder and cellist Mark Summer, violinist Mads Tolling and newcomer violinist Jeremy Kittel.

The Turtle Island Quartet’s approach has gained acclaim from others in the music business.

Andy Summers, who gained fame while playing guitar for the rock band Police, calls the group’s latest work “a stellar recording and achievement.” The album “Have You Ever Been … ?” and Balakrishnan’s composition “Tree of Life” was released in August 2010 on Telarc International, a division of the Concord Music Group.

“Translating the music of Jimi Hendrix’s visceral electric guitar music into the vernacular of the classical string quartet seems like an improbable idea,” Summers said. “Yet, on this remarkable recording, the Turtle Island Quartet has once again hit what at first might seem a difficult target. “A salute to the quartet for giving us a vigorous and scintillating reworking of the music of Jimi Hendrix.”

Advance tickets are available by contacting the Chadron State College box office at 308-432-6207 or boxoffice@csc.edu.