Several of the nation’s most acclaimed classical performers and artists will be featured at the second annual New Millennium Concert Series at Sacramento State this spring.

Andrew Luchansky, one of the professors directing the concert series said, “the series itself is by any measure, on a par with the U.C. Davis Presents Concerts Series and it is more affordable, right here in Sacramento, and in an appropriate hall for chamber music.”

Opening the series will be Lincoln Center’s quartet-in-residence, the Orion String Quartet. The concert will be held Feb. 12 at 8 p.m., in the Music Recital Hall in Capistrano Hall.

Hailed by the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times for its exquisite artistry, the Orion String Quartet is anchored by violinists and brothers Todd and Daniel Phillips, and also includes Steven Tenenbom on viola and Timothy Eddy on cello.

Grammy nominee Paul Hillier, director of the Early Music Institute at Indiana University, will perform “Love and Metaphysics,” a unique concert of English music of the early 17th century at 7:30 p.m., Mar. 4, in the Music Recital Hall. Hillier will be accompanied by one of the world’s foremost lutenists, Nigel North.

“Hillier is well known to Sacramento classical music fans,” Luchansky said.

The third concert in the series, held in conjunction with the ninth annual Sacramento State Festival of the Arts will be an all Bach performance by Marion Verbruggen at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Mar. 25 in the Music Recital Hall.

Verbruggen is regarded by many music critics as the world’s foremost master of the recorder.

The New York Times described her playing as “a miracle of poetry and precision.” Harpsichordist Arthur Hass will be accompanying Verbruggen.

Concluding the series will be a concert bjanety the internationally acclaimed Turtle Island String Quartet. The quartet will perform jazz music and is composed of violinists David Balakrishnan and Evan Price, violist Danny Seidenberg and cellist Mark Summer.

This last concert is also to be performed in the Music Recital Hall in Capistrano Hall, at 7:30 p.m., on Sunday Apr. 29.

“The Turtle Island String Quartet should provide an evening of pure joy for all in attendance, and Marion Verbruggen is considered “the premier” recorder player in the world,” said Luchansky.

The annual concert series is hosted by the Sacramento State Department of Music and directed by professors Luchansky and Laurel Zucker.

Student prices for the concerts are $8, with general tickets offered at $15. Subscriptions for the New Millennium Concert Series are available for $50. Tickets are available at the Sacramento State Central Ticket Office at (916) 278-4323 or at Tickets.com, (916) 766-2277.