The Penderecki String Quartet, approaching the third decade of an extraordinary career, has become one of the most celebrated chamber ensembles of their generation. These four musicians, each originating from different countries – Poland, Canada, USA and the UK – bring their varied yet collective experience to create performances that demonstrate their “remarkable range of technical excellence and emotional sweep” (Toronto, Globe and Mail).

The Quartet's performing schedule takes them annually to the great concert stages of North and South America, Europe and the Far East. Recent appearances include New York (Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall), Madrid, Amsterdam (Concertgebouw), Prague, St. Petersburg, Rome, Paris, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Indiana University, Wieczory Arsenale Festival in Poland, Is Arti Festival in Lithuania, Rive-Gauche Concerti in Italy, the Festival Internacional de Musica in Venezuela, Casalmaggiore Festival and Incontri in Terra di Sienna in Italy, Musicarama Festival Hong Kong, and the Shanghai International Arts Festival. The PSQ appears extensively in Canada, giving numerous performances in all the major centres from coast to coast and participating in this country’s foremost concert series such as the Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, Festival of the Sound, Festival Vancouver and Music Toronto.

The Penderecki Quartet collaborates regularly with eminent and diverse artists such as Martin Beaver, Atar Arad, Antonio Lysy, Luba Dubinsky, Jeremy Menuhin, James Campbell, jazz saxophonist Jane Bunnett, pipa virtuoso Ching Wong, choreographer David Earle, NYC turntable artist DJ Spooky, and actor Colin Fox.

The Penderecki Quartet was founded in Poland in 1986 at the urging of the pre-eminent Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki. The fruit of their association includes Penderecki's complete works for String Quartet on CD (United Records, England). To this day the Quartet is a devoted champion of the music of our time, and has performed a wide range of repertoire from Bach to Brahms, Bartók to Ligeti, Frank Zappa to John Oswald, as well as premiering over 100 new works from numerous composers including Brian Cherney, Linda C. Smith, Randolph Peters, Harry Freedman, Glenn Buhr, Alice Ho, Peter Hatch, Omar Daniel and Gilles Tremblay with assistance from the Canada Council, the Laidlaw Foundation, the CBC, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Hong Kong Arts Development Council.

Described by Fanfare Magazine as "an ensemble of formidable power and keen musical sensitivity", the Penderecki Quartet's large discography includes over 25 recordings including the chamber music repertoire of Johannes Brahms on both the Marquis and Eclectra labels, as well as a new release of the six Béla Bartók quartets under the auspices of Chamber Music in Napa Valley. The Quartet has also recorded discs for CBC, CMC, Centaur, EMI, United, and Artifact labels among others.

The Penderecki String Quartet devotes much of its time to Quartetfest, an intensive Spring-term seminar held at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario where guest faculty have included the Tokyo Quartet, the Ying Quartet, and the Colorado Quartet. The Penderecki Quartet's involvement in education is a year-round commitment as they enter their 16th year as Quartet-in-Residence at Waterloo's Wilfrid Laurier University. Under the Quartet's direction, the string program has become one of the top programs in Canada, attracting an international body of students.

Translate to : FRENCH | SPANISH