Prizewinners Announced at the Irene Steels-Wilsing Foundation Competition

The Animato Quartet won First Prize of €12,000 and a concert engagement at the Heidelberg Spring Festival

The biennial Irene Steels-Wilsing Foundation Competition first took place in Berlin in 2012, and since that time, it has acted as a launchpad for young string quartets in Europe. In 2018, the competition became affiliated with the Heidelberg Spring String Quartet Festival.

The 2025 edition was held on January 22, and eight quartets were selected to take part from a pool of 27 applicants.

The Animato Quartet, comprising violinists Inga Våga Gaustad and Tim Brackman, violist Elisa Karen Tavenier, and cellist Pieter de Koe, was named as the overall winner. They receive a cash prize of €12,000, as well as a concert engagement at the Heidelberg Spring Festival in 2026.

The group has previously won the Kersjes Prize of the Netherlands for chamber music, and are laureates of competitions in Weimar (Joseph Joachim) and Trondheim. They were also previously artists in residence at the Dutch String Quartet Academy.

Second prize of €6,000 went to the Viatores Quartet, while third prize of €4,000 went to the Nerida Quartet. There was also an audience prize of €1,000, donated by the Heidelberg Music Foundation, and this went to the Elaia Quartet.

In 2025, the jury comprised Jörg Lengersdorf (presenter), Annette Walther (Signum Quartet), Caspar Vinzens (Aris Quartet), Ulrich Witteler (solo cellist of the WDR Symphony Orchestra; formerly Gemeaux Quartet), and Irene Schwalb (violist and artistic advisor for the String Quartet Festival).

"2025 started out with lots of smiles and energy at the Heidelberger Frühling as we were awarded the first prize at the Irene Steels-Wilsing competition," the Animato Quartet wrote on social media. "We had a wonderful time in Heidelberg, both on and off stage, and how nice it is to meet both old and new friends in the quartet scene!"

"Congratulations to the other prize winners and participants! And lastly, a special thank you to Irene Steels-Wilsing for her enthusiasm and love for string quartets."

"We can’t wait to come back next year!"