Competitors Announced for 15th Triennial Banff International String Quartet Competition

From August 25-31, 2025, ten quartets will congregate at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Alberta, Canada, and will be streamed on The Violin Channel

The Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity announced the ten talented quartets that will compete in the 2025 Banff International String Quartet Competition (BISQC). Held every three years on Banff Centre’s campus in Alberta, Canada, BISQC’s grand prize awards the top quartet with residencies, performance opportunities, and a financial award, together worth over $500,000.

Ten competing quartets will travel to Banff from August 25-31, 2025, for the 15th edition of the competition. They are:

The ten competing quartets will be:

• Arete Quartet – Based in Seoul, South Korea
• Cong Quartet – Based in Hong Kong, China
• Quatuor Elmire – Based in Paris, France
• Quartett HANA – Based in Munich, Germany
• Quartet KAIRI – Based in Salzburg, Austria
• Quatuor Magenta – Based in Paris, France
• Myriade String Quartet – Based in Montreal, Canada
• Nerida Quartet – Based in Bremen, Germany
• Poiesis Quartet – Based in Cincinnati, United States of America
• Viatores Quartet – Based in Berlin, Germany

Three quartets will be chosen for the fifth and final round. New to the 2025 event, the final round will require finalists to curate their own unique program of repertoire.

The Canadian Commission Round will feature a world premiere by composer Kati Agócs titled Rapprochement.

The laureate quartets will be offered residency opportunities at Banff Centre and, for the first prize laureates, a custom-designed three-year artistic and career development program — which includes touring, a recording residency, the Southern Methodist University Peak Fellowship Ensemble-in-Residence Prize of a paid residency worth $110,000 CAD, an Esterházy Foundation Residency with concerts at Haydn Hall in Eisenstadt and the Lucerne Festival, and an opportunity for a two-week Chamber Music in Residency at the prestigious Britten Pears Arts in England.

All quartets not advancing to the finals will receive a Christine and David Anderson Prize of $5,000 CAD.

“We are looking forward to welcoming ten truly extraordinary string quartets to Banff Centre this summer," said Barry Shiffman, Director of BISQC. "The esteemed preliminary jury reviewed a record number of applications from quartets around the globe. These ten quartets they selected now have the chance for a life-changing opportunity that success in Banff can provide."

“The triennial competition brings together a passionate community of audiences with a crop of fresh musicians representing the next generation of world-renowned players," said Chris Lorway, President and CEO of Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. "The alchemy of this music, this crowd, and this setting is absolutely magical. I’m excited to meet these artists and introduce them into our family of alumni and friends for life."

For those attending in person, single event tickets will go on sale at 9 a.m. MT on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, at banffcentre.ca/bisqc.

Past winners of BISQC include the Isidore String Quartet (USA, 2022); Marmen Quartet and Viano Quartet (2019); Rolston Quartet (2016); Dover Quartet (USA, 2013); Cecilia String Quartet (Canada, 2010); Tinalley String Quartet (Australia, 2007); Jupiter String Quartet (USA, 2004); Daedalus Quartet (USA, 2001); Miró Quartet (USA, 1998) and, St. Lawrence String Quartet (Canada, 1992).