The Vermeer Quartet will perform at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 3 at the Music Building’s Boutell Memorial Concert Hall.

The public is invited to attend. The quartet includes Shmuel Askenasi and Mathias Tacke (violins), Richard Young (viola), and Marc Johnson (cello). The quartet members are music professors at the College of Visual and Performing Arts for their respective instruments.

The quartet has toured every major city in North and South America, Europe, the Far East and Australia, according to www.vermeerqt.com. The quartet was nominated for a Grammy in 1995 for its album The Seven Last Words of Christ. The group’s music has reached more than 80 million people around the world.

Not only has the quartet graced the world with its musical talent, the group also had the opportunity to play for the U.S. Supreme Court. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg commended the men on their performance, saying it was “intensely brilliant” and “simply super.” Justice David Souter also said the quartet provided him with the “most enjoyable 25 minutes” he’d ever spent at the Supreme Court.

Harold Kafer, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, think the quartet’s music is a great tradition at NIU. Kaefer believes the Vermeer Quartet is one of the greatest string quartets in the world. He said they’re also exceptional teachers.

Next Wednesday, the Vermeer Quartet will perform Haydn’s Quartet, Op. 64 #6, Shostakovich’s String Quartet #3, Op. 29 and the Quartet in G minor, Op. 10 by Debussy. Kafer encourages all of the NIU community to attend the concert.

“They make a huge impact not only for students, but worldwide,” he said.