Brooklyn Rider is a string quartet based in Brooklyn, New York City, whose members include violinists Johnny Gandelsman and Colin Jacobsen, violist Nicholas Cords and cellist Michael Nicolas. They are mainly known for playing unusual and contemporary repertoire, and for collaborating with musicians from outside the classical music sphere. The quartet has founded the Stillwater Music Festival in 2006 to serve as a place to unveil new repertory and collaborations; the festival's last concerts were held in 2015. Brooklyn Rider also spends time teaching, including past residencies at Denison University, Dartmouth College, Williams College, MacPhail Center for the Arts, Texas A&M University and University of North Carolina. 　　Past performances have included evenings at the Schwartz Center (Atlanta, Georgia), the Kimmel Center, the Cologne Philharmonie, American Academy in Rome, Spoleto Festival USA, and Malmö Festival in Sweden. In 2010, the quartet was invited to play at the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, which was also broadcast live on NPR. They are the only classical performers to have been invited to play at the festival to date. Brooklyn Rider made their Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall debuts in 2011. 　　In 2016, cellist Michael Nicolas replaced Eric Jacobsen in the ensemble.