“… the finest new string quartet in recent memory.” – The Dallas Morning News
“One of the more satisfying debuts of recent years.” – Chicago Tribune
“These four string virtuosos animate every note with uncommon power and passion as well as elegance. Listen and weep.”
– The Toronto Star
Four like-minded musicians formed the New Orford String Quartet five years ago with the goal of developing a new model for a touring string quartet. Their concept – to bring four elite orchestral leaders together on a regular basis over many years to perform chamber music at the highest level – has resulted in a quartet that maintains a remarkably fresh perspective while bringing a palpable sense of joy to each performance. The Toronto Star has described this outcome as “nothing short of electrifying.”
Consisting of the concertmasters and principal cellist and violist of the Montreal and Toronto Symphonies, the New Orford String Quartet has seen astonishing success, giving annual concerts for national CBC broadcast and receiving unanimous critical acclaim, including two Opus Awards for Concert of the Year.
The original Orford String Quartet gave its first public concert in 1965, and became one of the best-known and most illustrious chamber music ensembles. After more than 2,000 concerts on six continents, the Orford String Quartet gave its last concert in 1991. Two decades later, in July 2009 the New Orford String Quartet took up this mantle, giving its first concert for a sold-out audience at the Orford Arts Centre. The New Orford has since gone on to perform concerts throughout North America and lead residencies at the University of Toronto, Mount Royal University, and Syracuse University.
In 2011, the Quartet recorded its debut album of the final quartets of Schubert and Beethoven that was released by Bridge Records to international acclaim. The recording was hailed as one of the top CDs of 2011 by La Presse and CBC In Concert and nominated for a JUNO Award in 2012. Critics have described the recording as “…flawless… a match made in heaven!” (Classical Music Sentinel); “a performance of rare intensity” (Audiophile Audition); and “nothing short of electrifying… listen and weep.” (The Toronto Star).
CBC Music recently produced an online series of videos of the New Orford String Quartet performing Haydn, Beethoven, and Brahms that were filmed in Toronto and at the Banff Center. New Orford is dedicated to promoting Canadian works, both new commissions and neglected repertoire from the previous century. Each New Orford String Quartet project has included performances of a major Canadian string quartet from the 20th century including works by Airat Ichmouratov, Jacques Hétu, R. Murray Schafer, and Claude Vivier. The Quartet thrives on exploring the rich chamber music repertoire; recent collaborations include those with pianists Marc-André Hamelin and Menahem Pressler.
The Quartet regularly tours in the major cities of North American, including Washington, D.C., Toronto, and Los Angeles; at the same time, the members feel strongly about bringing this music to areas that don’t often hear it, and as a result perform frequently in tiny, rural places. As part of their leadership positions at the major orchestras in Montreal and Toronto, each member of the Quartet regularly has the opportunity to perform as a soloist with his orchestra. Members of the New Orford String Quartet teach at McGill University and the University of Toronto.
August 2015
