casalQuartett
A | EE
Born
Zurich, Switzerland
Studies with
Carmina-Quartett (Zurich), Alban-Berg- Quartett (Cologne), Walter Levin (Basel)
Highlights
CD „Birth of String Quartett Vol. 2“ received the Pizzicato Award and the DIAPASON Decouverte
ICME-Award Nomination in Cannes 2012
Grammy nomination 2014
Best List 03/2022 German Record Critics' Award
Prizes
Interpretation-Prize of the City of Zurich 2010
ECHO KLASSIK 2010
Diapason d'Or 2014
ECHO KLASSIK 2015 (Quartets Franz Richter)
Deutscher Schallplattenpreis 2017 (with Sebastian Manz)
ECHO KLASSIK 2017 (with Sebastian Manz)
Recordings
Bayer Records, Telos Music, Guild, Solo Musica
Short Biography
Felix Froschhammer | Violin
Rachel Rosina Späth | Violin
Markus Fleck | Viola
Sebastian Braun | Cello

„Sometimes there are musical encounters one never forgets.“ Philharmonie Luxembourg

Founded in 1996, the casalQuartet’s formal training took place under the watchful eyes of the Carmina Quartet in Zurich, the Alban Berg in Cologne and Walter Levin in Basel.
The quartet has also benefited greatly from performing with musicians such as Martha Argerich, Clemens Hagen, Sol Gabetta, Emma Kirkby, Benjamin Schmid, Maurice Steger, Marcelo Nisinman, Christoph Prégardien, Khatia Buniatishvili, Nuria Rial, Regula Mühlemann and many others.

In more than 1.800 concerts in many parts of the world and at renowned festivals, the casalQuartet has captivated its audiences with inspired and precise musicianship and at the same time the integration of colleagues from other artistic disciplines. Concept oriented programming is equally important to the quartet’s vision - which it promulgates at several own festivals and concert series in Germany and Switzerland.

The four musicians see the string quartet as one of the most versatile genres in music, equally successful in its journeys from the 17th century to Tango Nuevo, jazz and the newest works of today, and well adapted to extending previous programming boundaries by the inclusion of theatre, dance and literature. Projects for young people, as well as moderated concerts are features of the quartet’s mission, which is to create a lively dialogue between tradition and innovation.

The intensive and substantial work on the ideal period instruments by Jacobus Stainer from around 1650 and the largely unknown music of the 18th century during the last years not only gained many fans for the ensembles mission, but also created an unparalleled quartet-sound and -style, which sheds a new light on the „Golden Period“ of the string quartet.

In 2020 the casalQuartet published „Beethovens World“, a voluminous box of 5 CDs and a 112page booklet, featuring three central string quartets by Beethoven, contrasted with six quartets by Mendelssohn, Boccherini, Haydn, Schubert, Schumann, Donizetti and three World Premiere Recordings of pieces by Adalbert Gyrowetz, Carl Czerny and Peter Hänsel, all composed in the same years as Beethovens quartets. The box won high critical acclaim internationally.

CDs by the casalQuartet were awarded several times with the the ECHO KLASSIK, the Pizzicato Award Luxemburg, the DIAPASON Decouverte and DIAPASON d’Or as well as with nominations for the Deutscher Schallplattenpreis, the ICMA-Award and the American Grammy. Für 2020 kreierte das cQ eine vierteilige Homage an Beethoven, „Beethovens Welt“, die neben seinem Werk auch seine Zeitgenossen und musikalischen Einflüsse eindrücklich porträtiert.

2022/2023

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