The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble, eight string players from around the world, is heard on more than 30 records produced by major labels. The program they will perform Sunday at George Mason University Center for the Arts, a Brahms sextet and octets by Shostakovich and Mendelssohn, is one that thrills audiences everywhere.

The instrumentalists are members of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chamber Orchestra based at the church by the same name in London’s Trafalgar Square. It has been regarded as one of the world’s foremost ensembles since its founding in 1959 by Sir Neville Marriner as a string group without a conductor.