The young French string quartet Quatuor Voce has been selected for the Rising Stars programme on the recommendation of the Cité de la Musique cultural centre in Paris. Under the aegis of this project of the European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO), the quartet will now feature among those given the chance to present themselves at the continent’s most prestigious concert venues in the 2013/14 season. The string quartet is not the simplest of formats, given that the greatest in the genre believe that its sound only begins to truly “come together” after many years of ensemble playing and methodical practice, to reach the point where the four instruments play together as one. Quatuor Voce, however, is a mature ensemble whose members have already been together for close to a decade. Initially, they worked with the professional support of the Ysaÿe Quartet, winning several major competitions, and also received a grant to study with the leader of the legendary Alban Berg Quartet. One of the ensemble’s most important artistic goals is to break out of the traditional concert hall framework typical of string quartets, preserving their youthful vitality and openness. In this spirit, they have performed with pop singers, collaborated with a choreographer, bird song imitators and jazz musicians, and accompanied screenings of silent movie classics. At the same time, they devote considerable energies to popularising classical music with the younger generation as regular participants at festivals and music camps.
For its appearance in Budapest, the quartet presents its more traditionalist side through the works of two essential composers of the string quartet repertoire: a masterpiece of the Classical period by Beethoven, followed by an exemplary piece of 20th century chamber music by Bartók.

Presented by: Palace of Arts