Ebène Quartet

Pierre Colombet, violin
Gabriel Le Magadure, violin
Mathieu Herzog, viola
Raphaël Merlin, cello

Distinguished by its youth, open-mindedness, and versatility, France’s Ebène Quartet has had a meteoric rise to the top. Now among the world’s most sought-after quartets, the Quartet made its U.S. debut tour in March 2009 to widespread, dazzling critical acclaim. The tour featured performances in Boston, Seattle, Washington, D.C., and at Carnegie Hall. In October 2009, the Ebène Quartet won "Recording of the Year" at the 2009 Classic FM Gramophone Awards for their CD of Debussy, Ravel, and Fauré string quartets, only the fourth time that a chamber ensemble has won this prestigious prize. This same recording was named Gramophone’s December 2008 Editor’s Choice and received five-star ratings from both  BBC Music Magazine and London’s Sunday Times.
 
In the 2008-2009 season, the Quartet participated in a Haydn cycle at London’s Wigmore Hall, with the Emerson, Hagen, and Arcanto Quartets. The Ebène celebrated the Haydn Year at Brussel’s Palais des Beaux-Arts, and performed in other notable venues including the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Zurich’s Tonhalle, Vienna’s Musikverein, the City of London Festival, and Gstaad’s Menuhin Festival. In the summer of 2010 the Quartet will make its Tanglewood and Mostly Mozart debuts.
 
The Ebène Quartet’s live Haydn CD (Mirare, Harmonia Mundi) was released in February 2006 to unanimous worldwide praise, including a selection of “Album of the Month” by The Strad. As part of its multi-year deal with Virgin Classics, the Ebène released a Brahms CD in the fall of 2009, and will release a jazz and crossover CD in the autumn of 2010. This improvisatory recording with the group known in France as “The Other Ebène” will feature collaborators of international stature, including the singer Natalie Dessay.
 
Considered one of the finest quartets of its generation, the Quartet was named BBC Music Magazine’s 2009 Newcomer of the Year, and was also nominated for the renowned Les Victoires de la Musique Classique Chamber Music Ensemble of the Year for 2009. In June 2006, the Ebène was admitted to the esteemed BBC New Generation Artists Scheme, and in 2004 was awarded the First Prize of the prestigious ARD Competition in Munich, as well as the Audience Prize, two Prizes for the best interpretation, and the Karl Klinger Foundation Prize.