GEOFF NUTTALL began playing the violin at the age of eight after moving to London, Ontario from College Station, Texas. He spent most of his musical studies under the tutelage of Lorand Fenyves at the Banff Centre, the University of Western Ontario, and the University of Toronto, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree.

In 1989, Nuttall co-founded the St. Lawrence String Quartet. As first violinist of this world-renowned foursome, he has performed well over 1600 concerts throughout North and South America, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, and Asia.

Currently under an exclusive contract with EMI Classics, the Quartet received two Grammy nominations for their release Yiddishbbuk, a collection of works by the Argentinean-American composer Osvaldo Golijov. Their debut recording of Robert Schumann Quartets won a Juno Award from the Canadian Academy for Arts and Sciences for Best Classical Album, as well as the coveted German critic's award Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. A recording of Shostakovich Quartets Nos. 3, 7, and 8 will be released later this year.

Since winning the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Young Concert Artist Auditions in the early '90s, the St. Lawrence String Quartet has become a regular at some of North America's most esteemed music festivals, including Mostly Mozart, Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, Bay Chamber Concerts, and Spoleto USA, where they will be celebrating ten years as Quartet-in-Residence this summer.

With the St. Lawrence Quartet, Nuttall served as Graduate Ensemble-in-Residence at the Juilliard School, Yale University, and Hartt School of Music, acting as teaching assistants to the Juilliard, Tokyo, and Emerson String Quartets, respectively.

He is now on faculty at Stanford University, where the St. Lawrence Quartet has been Ensemble-in-Residence since 1999, and makes his home in San Francisco with his wife, violinist Livia Sohn.