The founding members of the FSQ first sat down together in The Gaskoin Room at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, in October 1968, as undergraduates during their inaugural term.  Their first concert appearance took place in Churchill College the following March, before their public debut at the Sheffield Arts Festival in June.  This makes them one of the longest established string quartets in the world - and possibly unique in having reached this milestone with an original player still on board!  An extensive diary of celebratory events is already in place and new CD recordings will be issued: of quartets by Schubert on gut, and a double album of specific works by Shostakovich with which they have a special connection.