This propulsive concerto for string quartet and orchestra is built on fragments of Beethoven's late string quartets and other pieces.


Press Quotes


"Absolute Jest may well be the finest concerto for string quartet and orchestra ever written."
- Lawrence A. Johnson, Chicago Classical Review


"Absolute Jest is a work of terrific imagination and out-of-the-gate energy..."
- Richard Scheinin, San Jose Mercury News


"Adams' single-movement opus for string quartet and orchestra [Absolute Jest] is an audacious and affectionate riff on Beethoven's scherzos. Dense, roiling and furiously inventive, it emerges as a gripping 25-minute sonic joy ride."
- Georgia Rowe, Musical America


"The wedding between string quartet and orchestra was masterly…a significant addition to the increasingly impressive Adams canon."
- David Littlejohn, Wall Street Journal