Vitamin String Quartet

For over a decade now, the Vitamin String Quartet has made it possible for fans of the biggest names in rock and pop to hear their heroes' hits in a whole new way. These guys put the class in classical, but they apply those elegant arrangements to instrumental versions of everything from heart-melting ballads to ear-melting rockers. The soaring violins saturating the Vitamin-ized version of Queen's operatic rock anthem "Bohemian Rhapsody" may not seem completely out-of-left-field, but would you ever have imagined an interpretation of OutKast's pop/hip-hop crossover blockbuster "Hey Ya" that comes off like a Juilliard jam? Or chugging cello riffs firing up a funky feel for a strings-attached take on Michael Jackson's "Beat It"? In Next Steps, the Vitamin Strings stir up a heavy-rock ruckus.

When you mix the sophisticated sound of the Vitamin strings and the fierce force of these hard-rockin' heavyweights, you get the best of both worlds with a vengeance. That molten-gold guitar riff charging Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine" only multiplies in majesty when it's vamped out on a violin. The fearsome intensity of a string section in full flight turns out to be a mighty match for the primal power of AC/DC's classic-rock cannon-blast "Back In Black." And if you've ever wondered how to amp up the intensity of Metallica's "Enter Sandman" even further, well, we've got a fearsome foursome of sinister-sounding string sorcerers we'd like to introduce you to. In Deep Cuts, our string sensations soar towards pop perfection.

Get set for a musical magic trick, as the great divide between the pop and classical worlds vanishes into thin air when the Vitamin String Quartet gets its axes out. If Billy Joel had realized the baroque-pop potential of "Piano Man" early on, he might never have abandoned pop-craft for piano concertos. On the other side of the coin, if his piano-pounding pal Elton John had known the lofty melodic heights his 1970 smash "Your Song" could hit when a string quartet takes it over, he might have spent the rest of his career spinning out symphonies. And if you assumed the Red Hot Chili Peppers had already wrung every ounce of melancholy from "Under the Bridge," we know a few bow-toting folks who'd be happy to prove you wrong.

Crossover occurs in music all the time, be it a hip-hop tune with pop potential or a hard-rocking band with a ballad that brings them a bigger audience. But combining the elemental power of rock and the instant accessibility of pop with the sweeping grandeur of classical, well, that takes a special touch — and that's where the Vitamin String Quartet comes into the picture. If you're a rocker who never guessed you'd get off on the sound of four cats on stools sawing away at violas and violins, or a lifelong lover of chamber music who could never find an entry point into rock and pop, we recommend this Vitamin for daily use. Madonna's "Like a Prayer" as a neo-classical confection? Coldplay's "Clocks" pushed along by charging cellos? In the hands of the Vitamin Quartet, somehow it all makes sense, and we've raided their vast repertoire to bring you the essential selections from their genre-busting journey right here.