Cremona Quartet
Since its formation in 2000, the Quartetto di Cremona has established a reputation as one of the most exciting chamber ensembles on the international stage. Regularly invited to perform in major music festivals in Europe, North and South America, and Far East, they garner universal acclaim for their high level of interpretive artistry.
BBT Fellowship prize winner in 2005, the ensemble received also the “Franco Buitoni Award” (2019) for its constant contribution to the promotion of chamber music in Italy and around the world. In 2021, Quartetto di Cremona was designated a Si-Yo Master Artist™️ Ensemble.
Despite the pandemic emergency, in the past seasons the ensemble has made prestigious debuts such as at the Rudolfinum in Prague, at the CRR Concert Hall in Istanbul, Fundación Juan March in Madrid, Bruckner Haus in Linz and for the Chamber Music Society at Lincoln Center in New York. Recent and upcoming engagements include concerts in Scandinavia, Holland and Belgium, Germany and Austria, Spain, India, Taiwan and in major Italian concert societies. In addition, North American tours are regularly planned twice a year, with the Carnegie Hall debut scheduled for October 2023 as well as a re-invitation from the CMS in March 2024. The Quartet is also collaborating with numerous artists such as Eckart Runge, David Orlowsky, Pablo Barragan, Kit Armstrong, Miguel da Silva and the Emerson Quartet.
Released in November 2020, “Italian Postcards” (Avie Records) assembles evocations of the Mediterranean country by four non-natives composers (Mozart, Wolf, Tchaikovsky, Borenstein): the album has received enthusiastic reviews in the major international music magazines. In spring 2019, a double CD dedicated to Schubert was released with the participation of cellist Eckart Runge (Audite), and recorded with the Stradivarius set of instruments named “Paganini Quartet”, on kind loan from the Nippon Music Foundation (Tokyo). In 2018 was concluded the publication of the complete Beethoven Quartets (Audite), which was received with great interest by international critics and several prizes. In June 2022 the ensemble recorded its own version of The Art of Fugue, performed with seven instruments so as not to alter the original writing of Bach’s score.
Frequently invited to present masterclasses in Europe, Asia, North and South America, the members of the quartet have been Professors at the Walter Stauffer Academy in Cremona since 2011. They are ambassadors for the international project “Friends of Stradivari” and honorary citizens of Cremona, UNESCO Cultural Heritage for violin making. They also endorse the “Le Dimore del Quartetto” project and Thomastik Infield Strings.