BISQC Concert 12: Beethoven/Schubert + 20th Century

Louisa Staples (she/her) - violin, United Kingdom
Johannes Brzoska (he/him) - violin, Germany
Gordon K.H. Lau (he/him) - viola, Hong-Kong S.A.R
Umut Saglam (he/him) - cello, Turkey

The Viatores Quartet is a young string quartet based in Berlin. In 2024 they were awarded first prize at the Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Competition and the prize of the Freunde Junge Musiker. In 2025, the quartet won second prize at the ISW Foundation String Quartet Competition in Heidelberg. The quartet is increasingly in demand on the concert stage, and has performed at renowned concert venues including the Berlin Philharmonic and Konzerthaus Berlin.

Recent performances include appearances at Villa Musica, Hindemith-Tage, AIMA Festival, Piano Salon Christophori, and Mainau Castle. Upcoming performances will take them to cities such as Cologne, Munich, Düsseldorf, and Trier, as well as to Austria, Turkey, and Great Britain. They will also perform at the Hitzacker Festival in 2025, the Schumann Foundation Frankfurt, and the Schwetzingen Festival in 2026. This year will also see the production and release of their first CD album.

The Viatores Quartet was founded in 2023 at the Hanns Eisler Hfm Berlin. The group is currently studying with Professor Tabea Zimmermann at the HFMDK Frankfurt and at the HMTMH Hannover with Professor Oliver Wille. They have also received artistic guidance from renowned musicians such as Christian Tetzlaff, Nora Chastain, and Areta Zhula of Julliard String Quartet.

The quartet takes its name from the Latin term "Viatores", which means travelers. As the name suggests, the quartet proudly represents four different origins and cultures, united by a common goal.

Gyurim Kwak (she/her) - violin, South Korea
Fuga Miwatashi (she/her/ - violin, Japan
Simon Rosier (he/him) - viola, the Netherlands
Tzu-Shao Chao (he/him) - Cello, Taiwan

The Quartett HANA was founded in 2019 at the Munich University of Music and Performing Arts (HMTM). The name of the quartet reflects the home countries of its members: "HANA" means "flower" in Japanese and "unity" in Korean.

They are prize winner at multiple competitions, such as the Geneva International Music Competition 2023, where they received the 2nd prize. Furthermore, they won the 3rd prize at the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy University Competition in Berlin. In 2024 they took part at the Trondheim International Chamber Music Competition Academy.

The quartet has performed with many renowned artists, including Itamar Golan, Sarah McElravy, Francois Kieffer, Margarita Hohenrieder and Michael Enres. Recent performances have been, among others, at the Mozartfest Wurzburg and the Groba Festival in Spain and at the Heidelberger Fruling Streighquartettfest in 2025.

The quartet has been studying with Prof. Raphael Meriln and the Quatuor Ebene at the HMTM since 2021 and with Prof. Heime Muller at the Musikhochschule Lubeck since 2024. They work regularly with Prof. Eberhard Feltz and Prof. Dirk Mommertz (Fauré Quartett). Furthermore, they have participated in masterclasses by Prof. Oliver Wille and Prof. William Coleman (Kuss Quartett), Prof. Gunter Pichler (Alban Berg Quartett) and Quatuor Voce.

The two violinists Gyurim Kwak and Fuga Miwatashi alternate in the role of primaria. 

David Petrlik (he,him) - violin, France
Yoan Brakha (he, him) - violin, France
Hortense Fourrier (she, her) - viola, France
Rémi Carlon (he,him) - cello, France

Founded in 2017, the Elmire Quartet was warded Second Prize at the prestigious Geneva Competition, as well as the special Fondation Etrillard Prize for the remarkable artistic project.

The quartet has already performed in major venues such as the Philharmonie de Paris, Victori Hall in Geneva, the Philharmonie Luxembourg, and La Grange au Lac in Évian. Guided by the mentorship of the Modigliani, Ysaÿe, Belcea, and Ébène quartets, the Elmire Quartet is a resident artist at the Singer-Polignac Foundation, the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel, a ProQuartet grand resident, a Spedidam Generation Artist, and a laureate of the Banque Populaire Foundation.

Recently, the Elmire Quartet has performed at the prestigious Alte Oper in Frankfurt, the 30th La Folle Journée in Nantes, Salle Cortot, the Tokyo International Forum, MUCH Music Chapel in Waterloo, the International Festival of La Roque d’Anthéron, and the Philharmonie de Paris.