The idea is simple. After concerts, there is always someone from the audience who comes to talk to us and asks if we have recorded this or that piece. We have heard this repeatedly over the years, so we decided to combine all of the pieces that we and the audience like on one album. The other common link among these pieces is that all have been arranged or composed for or by us. There’s only one exception: the Rivier, a traditional saxophone quartet, but because we feel such a strong connection to this piece, we decided to make it “ours” as well.

Before the release of the first “Amstel Tracks” we did not think it was such a strong concept, but we were wrong. The album turned out to be the most personal and successful Amstel Quartet CD. The concept of personal taste and emotional links to the works we play turned out to be much stronger than any concept on paper. Thus, we hope that Amstel Tracks Now! will live up to the expectations of all our fans.
-- Amstel Quartet

Reviews:

"A superb program, musically sublimely constructed and played with absolute devotion. The sheer beauty of timbres, the cohesion of playing of the members of the Amstel Quartet, their symbiosis of colours and spiritual implications transform their interpretations into role models of musicality"
Remy Franck, Pizzicato - January 2012

"An album that enthusiasts of classical music would like very much and introduces lovers of the saxophone to listen to the beautiful classic evergreens by Mozart, Brahms and Barber."
Wil Zenhorst, Mania - March 2012

“That a lot of the notes are originally written for strings is no objection: the ‘Amstelwinds’ seems to have lungs with a volume of certified oxygen bottles.”
Telegraaf, Thiemo Wind – 5 may 2012