Few chamber ensembles in the world can boast that they have played together in the same formation for nearly forty years and yet also maintain their musical freshness. The Panocha Quartet will celebrate their fortieth anniversary in 2008, and new recordings as well as a number of reissues of their most successful titles are being released to celebrate the occasion. Janácek's String Quartets nos 1 and 2 are gems of the international quartet literature of the 20th century, and a touchstone for string quartets. The Panocha Quartet recorded this contribution to the history of Janácek interpretation in 1995, and the album was exceptionally highly praised by the critics. "Their" Janáèek is further proof of the strength of the Czech quartet tradition.