Praised for their “virtuosity, visceral expression, and rare unity of intention” (Boston Globe), the Viano Quartet are one of the most sought-after performing young ensembles today and recipients of the prestigious 2025 Avery Fisher Career Grant. Since soaring to international acclaim as the First Prize winner at the 13th Banff International String Quartet Competition, they have traveled to nearly every major city across the globe, captivating audiences in New York, London, Berlin, Hong Kong, Vancouver, Paris, Beijing, Toronto, Lucerne, and Los Angeles. They are currently in-residence at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Bowers Program from 2024-2027.
During the 24/25 season, the quartet will debut in New York’s Alice Tully Hall in the season opening concert of CMS Lincoln Center, followed by appearances at series including Wolf Trap, Tuesday Evening Concert Series, Northwestern University, Four Arts in FL, MoCA Westport in CT, Chamber Music Yellow Springs in OH, and the chamber music societies of Dallas, Salt Lake City, and Carmel. In November, the quartet will also make their debut in David Geffen Hall with Sir Stephen Hough for the world premiere of his new piano quintet. The quartet can be heard in Canada this season with debuts at the Cecilian Chamber Series as well as the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto and Isabel Bader PAC in Kingston in a program with famed guitarist Miloš Karadaglić. As the inaugural June Goldsmith Quartet-in-Residence for the Music in the Morning series through the 24/25 season, the quartet will return to Vancouver this March for concerts and extensive community engagement initiatives.
In addition to their busy touring schedule, the quartet are also dedicated advocates of music education, and have worked with students at Music@Menlo, SUNY Buffalo, the Colburn Academy, Duke University, University of British Columia, Northern Michigan University, Utah State University, University of Denver, and Virginia Commonwealth University. This season, they will be returning to University of Victoria for several weeks of residency which will include performances, masterclasses and lectures. The quartet has previously held graduate quartet residencies at Curtis and Colburn and were also the Peak Fellowship Quartet-in-Residence at Meadows School of the Arts at SMU.
The Viano Quartet has collaborated with world-class musicians including Emanuel Ax, Inon Barnatan, Fleur Barron, James Ehnes, Mahan Esfahani, Marc-André Hamelin, Bridget Kibbey, Paul Neubauer, David Shifrin, and Elisso Virsaladze. 2023 marked the release of the quartet’s first album Portraits on the Curtis Label, featuring pieces by Schubert, Florence Price, Tchaikovsky, and Ginastera.
In their formative years the quartet sustained unwavering enthusiasm from every international jury, never entering a major competition without capturing a top prize. Before their career-defining achievement at the Banff International String Quartet Competition, they also received major prizes at the Wigmore Hall, Osaka, Fischoff, ENKOR, and Yellow Springs Chamber Music Competitions. Each member of the quartet is grateful to the interminable support from their distinguished mentors at the Curtis Institute and Colburn Conservatory, including members of the Dover, Guarneri, and Tokyo string quartets.
The name “Viano” was created to describe the four individual instruments in a string quartet interacting as one. Each of the four instruments begins with the letter “v”, and like a piano, all four string instruments together play both harmony and melody, creating a unified instrument called the “Viano”.
APRIL 2025
