The Philharmonic String Octet of Berlin was founded in 1994 by eight members of the Berliner Philharmoniker. With its specific combination of chamber-musical intensity and large-scale symphonic sonority, the ensemble has quickly found a place in international concert life. It appears in Germany and abroad, for example in Japan, Spain and South America. On the occasion of two concerts at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Philharmonic String Octet was awarded the 1999 Argentine critics’ prize as Best Foreign Chamber Music Ensemble. Along with the standard repertoire, the musicians always take great delight in including unfamiliar and rarely performed works in their concert programmes.