The FLUX Quartet is legendary for its furiously committed, untiring performances: they gave the world premiere of the uncut version of Morton Feldman's String Quartet (II) and more recently played the complete string quartets of Giacinto Scelsi. Last week the Flux presented a critically acclaimed concert at Bargemusic, but disaster struck afterward. Tom Chiu, longtime leader of Flux, dozed off while waiting for the 2/3 at Clark Street, and when he woke he found that his violin and his laptop were gone. It's the violin, together with bow and case, that Chiu is particularly desperate to get back — he considers them "completely irreplaceable" — and he is offering a reward. Anyone with information can call 347-207-7954.
Update: Good news — the violin has turned up via a kind employee of the MTA. Eric Konigsberg has the full story in the New York Times.