Applications Open to Concours de Genève String Quartet Competition 2023

Held in Geneva, Switzerland, the competition open to all string quartets whose members are born after October 29, 1988

 

The string quartet edition of the 77th Concours de Genève - International Music Competition will take place from October 23 - November 4, 2023, in Geneva, Switzerland.

As the official media and broadcast partner, all rounds of this year's string quartet competition will be streamed on The Violin Channel and be available for playback.

For the string quartets, the cumulative age of all the members should not exceed 120 years. The first prize will receive CHF 20,000, second prize CHF 12,000, and third prize: CHF 8,000. Additional awards will be given out, such as the Audience Prize, Young Audience Prize, and Students Prize.

The competition also offers career development to its laureates, who will benefit from two years of management from the Sartory Artists agency. During the two years following their prize, laureates are offered an international concert tour and can participate in the Concours de Genève offers a Prizewinners Workshop — highlighting different subjects such as performance, health, career management, image, and social media.

To apply and learn more information, click here. Applications are to be received by April 20, 2023.

 

 

The String Quartet jury will comprise Corina Belcea (Chair), Stefan Fehlandt, Nobuko Imai, Gabriel Le Magadure, Christian Poltéra, Vineta Sareika, and Lydia Shelley.

To apply, the video preselection round must include two contrasting movements from a Haydn quartet of the ensemble's choice, and two contrasting movements from a quartet by one of the following composers: J. Brahms, F. Mendelssohn, F. Schubert, and R. Schumann.

The first part of the competition will be held online. Selected string quartets will have until July 10 to submit their videos for the Online Recital, which will be live-streamed from September 18-20.

The public Semi-Final will be held in Geneva from 24-28 October 24-28  and will take place in three stages: a 90-minute recital which must include one of Bartok’s quartets, followed by a 75-minute recital which must include one of Beethoven’s quartets, as well as a contemporary piece. Additionally, each semi-finalist will have to present and defend a personal artistic project, which the Concours de Genève will then contribute towards realizing as part of the Prizewinners’ Career Development Programme. A new feature of the Competition since 2022, this third stage seeks to provide further insight into candidates’ artistic personalities.

The Final Round will be held on October 29 at Geneva’s prestigious Victoria Hall and will be followed by the prize-giving ceremony.

 

The last string quartet edition of the competition was held in 2016, awarding the Vision String Quartet, Quatuor Hanson, and the Abel Quartet as first, second, and third prize winners respectively.

 

 

Founded in 1939, Concours de Genève is one of the world’s leading international music competitions. It aims at discovering, promoting, and supporting young talented artists, giving them the necessary tools to launch an international career. Several main disciplines rotate annually, including piano, flute, oboe, clarinet, cello, viola, string quartet, voice, percussion, and composition, which is held every second year.