We are delighted that the Castalian String Quartet, including former pupil Daniel Roberts (pictured left, violin), has been awarded the prestigious Young Artists Award 2019 at a glittering ceremony held at the Battersea Arts Centre in London.
The Young Artists Award is given "for a solo performing artist or chamber ensemble, relatively new to the profession, who has shown remarkable promise and made a strong impression in the UK between January 2018 and June 2019."
"Thoughtful, intelligent music-making"
The judges this year were drawn from figures across the music industry and were:
- Caro Barnfield, Head, Britten-Pears Young Artists Programme, Snape Maltings
- Manus Carey, Deputy Director, Performance and Programmes, Royal Northern College of Music
- Oliver Condy, Editor, BBC Music Magazine
- Rakhi Singh, violinist / Music Director, Manchester Collective
- Sean Shibe, guitarist
When describing the Castalian String Quartet, they said:
"Thoughtful, intelligent music-making at the highest level. The Castalian String Quartet have a strong identity, sound and style, and it’s great to see them getting out and connecting with audiences nationally through Britain’s precious network of music societies, bringing such consistency to a broad repertoire from Thomas Adès to blazingly fresh Haydn."
The Royal Philharmonic Society Awards
The Royal Philharmonic Society Awards "celebrate the outstanding, the pioneering, and the inspirational in classical music. It’s the one date in the musical calendar that brings together the UK’s musical profession, from superstars of the stage to unsung heroes engaging every corner of the nation with great music-making. It’s a chance for music lovers nationally to discover who has made an extraordinary impact in the last year, and who to follow in the years ahead."
The Awards are presented in association with BBC Radio 3 who cover all the celebrations, from the much-anticipated shortlist announcement on ‘In Tune’ to a full-length programme celebrating the nominees and winners, recorded at the Awards.
Building on success
This is not the first major award for the quartet. They were the recipient of the inaugural Merito String Quartet Award & Valentin Erben Prize and a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship Award in 2018.
They perform regularly and highlights this season include a complete Brahms and Schumann chamber music cycle at Wigmore Hall, their Carnegie Hall debut and taking part in the Simmenauer International Beethoven Quartet Cycle.
Read more about the Castalian String Quartet here.