Wigmore Hall and Art Silvia Sweep 'Esme Quartet' Domestic Debut Recital

by Park Pyunghee

Published 26 Feb.2020 17:58(KST)

On June 9 at Lotte Concert Hall... Jin Eun-sook, Schumann, and Schubert String Quartet Performance

Esme Quartet [Photo by Art Silvia]

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] The Esm? Quartet, a string quartet, will hold their domestic debut recital at Lotte Concert Hall on June 9.

The Esm? Quartet gained attention as the first Korean winners of the prestigious Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition in 2018. On the 22nd, they also won the grand prize (Artsilvia Award) at the 9th Artsilvia Chamber Music Audition. Since 2012, the Artsilvia Foundation has designated categories each year through the Artsilvia Chamber Music Audition to discover and support young and talented chamber music teams leading the future of classical music in Korea. The Esm? Quartet will receive a prize of 20 million KRW and support for ensemble activities over the next two years from the Artsilvia Foundation.

The Esm? Quartet was formed in 2016 by violinists Bae Wonhee and Ha Yuna, violist Kim Jiwon, and cellist Heo Yeeun, who were based in Germany. Shortly after its founding, the quartet won first place at the Cologne Chamber Music Competition, followed by the Newcomer Award at the 2017 German Bikersheim Chamber Music Festival and third place in the string quartet category at the Trondheim International Chamber Music Competition in Norway.

In 2018, they performed by invitation at the Belgium Plage Musik3 Festival, Austria Herbstgold Festival, France Aix-en-Provence Festival, Canada Montreal MISQA Festival, and Heidelberg String Quartet Festival, and were selected as resident musicians at the Esterh?zy Palace, gaining attention. Last year, they became the first Korean chamber music group to debut at the Lucerne Festival in Switzerland and successfully completed a tour of over 15 performances across the UK, including at London’s Wigmore Hall.

The team name 'Esm?' is an old French word meaning 'beloved.' At their domestic debut recital in June, the Esm? Quartet will perform Jin Eun-sook’s string quartet piece Parametastrin, Schumann’s String Quartet No. 1, and Schubert’s string quartet 'Death and the Maiden.' Notably, the Esm? Quartet will be the first to record Jin Eun-sook’s Parametastrin, composed 23 years ago, with the album set to be released in March under the Alpha Classic label.

After the Lotte Concert Hall performance, the Esm? Quartet is scheduled to perform at Tongyeong International Music Hall on June 13 and Cheonan Arts Center on June 17.