At the Center of All Things brings together the expressive, early-music influenced string quartets of Stanley Grill with the intense, visceral sound of the Diderot Quartet’s gut-stringed instruments. A composer for whom the string quartet is the perfect medium to express, in a modern idiom, his passion for the contemplative aspects of Renaissance vocal music, the album includes three of Stanley Grill’s many string quartets: American landscapes, Lonely Voices and the title track, At the Center of All Things. Raised in New York City, Stanley Grill has spent a lifetime composing music as an act of translation, trying to understand the world and convey that understanding in musical terms. Two main themes carry through in his work- music composed as a reflection of the physical world and music composed to inspire and promote world peace. These themes are at the heart of all three works included on At the Center of All Things. The unique sound that emerges from the Diderot Quartet’s period instruments is ideal for these three introspective and intensely personal works. On this album, the Diderot gives a brilliant, evocative performance that perfectly captures the nature of the composer’s work- music that is completely contemporary while simultaneously looking back in time to the beauty and harmony of early vocal music.