Pierre Colombet, violin
Gabriel Le Magadure, violin
Mathieu Herzog, viola
Raphaël Merlin, cello
“Interpreters of rare understanding and communicative flair” --The Strad
The Ebène Quartet is distinguished by its open-mindedness and versatility, displaying equal facility in the classical repertoire and contemporary music. In addition, the quartet performs jazz concerts in renowned jazz venues to complement its other activities.
Considered one of the finest quartets of its generation, its activities for upcoming seasons, include participation in a Haydn cycle at London’s Wigmore Hall, with the Emerson, Hagen, and Arcanto Quartets in 2008-09. They will also celebrate the Haydn year at Brussel’s Palais des Beaux-Arts and will perform in such other venues as Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Rotterdam’s De Doelen, Zurich’s Tonhalle, Vienna’s Musikverein, the City of London Festival, Gstaad’s Menuhin Festival, along with many other venues in Europe, the United States, and Japan.
In June 2006, the Ebène Quartet was admitted to the BBC New Generation Artists Scheme. In 2004, the quartet was awarded the First Prize of the prestigious ARD Competition in Munich, as well as the Audience Prize, two Prizes for the best interpretation, and the Karl Klinger Foundation Prize. The Quartet is also the recipient of both the Fondation Groupe Banque Populaire award and more recently the Belmont Prize for Contemporary Music from the Forberg-Schneider Foundation.
Chamber music collaborators include internationally-renowned musicians such as Michel Dalberto, Frank Braley, Nicolai Lugansky, Alexandre Tharaud, Gary Hoffman, François Salque, Michel Portal, Eric Le Sage, Paul Meyer, Patricia Petibon, and the Lindsay Quartet.
The Ebène Quartet’s live Haydn CD (Mirare, Harmonia Mundi) was released in February 2006, and received unanimous worldwise praise, including a selection of “Album of the Month” by The Strad. The Quartet released a Bartok CD in February 2007.
