On August 28, ten of the world’s finest emerging string quartets will arrive in Banff, Canada, for the 9th Banff International String Quartet Competition (BISQC). Today, The Banff Centre announced the ten quartets chosen to participate in the 2007 competition, an international roster of accomplished young musicians. The quartets are:
- Afiara String Quartet (Canada)
- Ariel Quartet (Israel/United States)
- Attacca Quartet (United States)
- Koryo String Quartet (United States)
- Rubens Quartet (The Netherlands)
- Rusquartet (Russia)
- Talisker Quartet (Denmark)
- TinAlley String Quartet (Australia)
- Tokai String Quartet (Canada)
- Zemlinsky Quartet (Czech Republic)
The competitors were chosen by a distinguished preliminary jury including Christopher Costanza of the St. Lawrence String Quartet, Daniel Phillips of the Orion String Quartet, and Heime Müller of the Artemis String Quartet. The jury members worked independently during this stage of the competition, reviewing unidentified recordings of recent unedited performances.
“I simply cannot wait for August 28th. The quality of applicants for the 9th BISQC was extraordinary. The invited quartets represent the best of the new generation and it will be thrilling to hear them all live at The Banff Centre,” says Barry Shiffman, director of BISQC.
Founded in 1983 to mark the 50th anniversary of The Banff Centre, BISQC is a triennial competition that helps support emerging careers and raise awareness of classical music. Recognized by the World Federation of International Music Competitions, it is among the top events of its kind. Past winners have included the St. Lawrence, Miró, Daedalus, and Jupiter string quartets.
During the competition, from August 28 to September 2, each of the ten quartets will perform a range of repertoire in multiple performances before an audience of more than 900 listeners. Works performed will include repertoire of the classical, Romantic, and 20th Century, as well as a new work co-commissioned by The Banff Centre and the CBC by Canadian composer Kelly-Marie Murphy. Four finalist quartets are chosen on September 1 to compete in the final round on Sunday, September 2, which will wrap up with the RBC Awards.
First prize includes $20,000, a quartet of bows made by Canadian bow-maker François Malo, a North American and European concert tour, and the offer of a residency at The Banff Centre including the recording of a compact disc engineered and recorded by the Centre’s Music and Sound Department. The second prize award is $12,000, with $8,000 for third prize, $5,000 for fourth prize, and $5,000 in additional awards.
In 2007, the BISQC competition jury is made up of seven of the world’s top musicians, mentors, and teachers. They include Henk Guittart of the Schoenberg Quartet, Paul Katz, formerly of the Cleveland String Quartet, Lesley Robertson of the St. Lawrence String Quartet, Gerhard Schulz of the Alban Berg Quartet, Mariana Sirbu of the Quartetto Stradivari, Simon Standage of the Salomon Quartet, and Jacqueline Thomas of the Brodsky String Quartet.
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