Profile & Special Focus
It is always difficult to choose a name. In the case of a string quartet, following a long and challenging struggle over it, once a name has finally been found one is forever having to explain the reasons for that choice. It is probably the name which finds you rather than the other way around, since, in their case, they all recognised ourselves immediately at the mention by one of them of Zaïde, Mozart’s unfinished Singspiel. Firstly, because of its immediate musical impact, as one hears a short, sharp sound, and, also, the fact that to a French person, the Z and the dieresis lend it an exotic note, and make one feel like travelling. And the name starts to resonate… Zaïde is the heroine of a drama and it follows that this quartet is the heart of the story that they are beginning to write together.
The group makes it a point of honour not to specialise in a specific repertoire, convinced that the music of the past sheds light on the present and that one cannot understand the music of the past without inhabiting that of the present. The creation of new works is one of the quartet’s interests.
Awards
1st prize at International Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Competition 2012
1st prize at Beijing International Music Competition 2011
1st prize at Charles Hennen International Chamber Music Competition 2010
Press Prize at Bordeaux International Competition 2010
Laureate of HSBC prize of Festival Aix-en-Provence 2010
selected participant of the ECHO Rising Star 2015
Partners, cooperations and past performances
Concerts at:
Wigmore Hall & Barbican Hall, London (UK)
Tonhalle Zurich (CH)
Philharmonies in Berlin, Cologne, Essen, Dortmund, Düsseldorf; Festspielhaus Baden Baden (DE)
Philharmonie Luxembourg (LU)
Concertgebouw Amsterdam and Bruges (NL)
Concertgebouw Gent (BE)
Théâtre des Champs-Élysées; Théâtre de la Ville; Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord: auditorium of the Musée d'Orsay, Paris (FR)
Musikverein; Konzerthaus, Vienna (AT)
Jordan Hall, Boston (USA)
Téatro Colón, Bogota (CO)
Sesc, São Paulo (BR)
Forbidden City, Beijing (CN)
Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HK)CDs (all in collaboration with NoMadMusic):
Haydn (2015): won 4F Telerama
Franck-Chausson (2017): won CHOC Classica
Amadeus (2019): won CHOC Classica
Ludwig (2020): won CHOC ClassicaCollaborations with:
Abdel Raman El Bacha, Beatrice Rana, Alexander Lonquich, Eric Le Sage, Bertrand Chamayou, Adam Laloum, Jonas Vitaud, David Kadouch, Da Sol Kim, Lise de la Salle, Nicolas Alsteadt, Jérôme Pernoo, Edgar Moreau, Yovan Markoviic, Lise Berthaud, Miguel Da Silva, Antoine Tammestit, Karine Deshayes, Catherine Trottman, Andrea Hill, Voce Quartet, Zemlinsky Quartet, Kuss Quartet, Doric Quartet, Auryn QuartetUpcoming concerts and tours
2024
13-14 January 2024: Paris Philharmonie (FR)16 March 2024: Stockholm (SE)
Reviews & Feedback
"With this recording we find again the magnificent sound and musical qualities, working the emotion with each bow stroke, there is not a note that is not inhabited. We are not surprised that such luminaries as Gordan Nicolic brought light and advice to the beginnings of the ensemble, which in turn, through numerous master classes, passes the torch.“ - musicologie.org
“The Zaïde, very attentive, very luminous, offer a dreamy and tender reading in the slow movement, and elsewhere find the ardour and vivacity of their quintet.” - France Info
“With this 'Amadeus' recording, the Zaïde Quartet has comfortably settled into the family of the great consecrated formations. A blessed entry into communication with the complex and captivating personality of Mozart, whom they serve magically.” - Jean-Luc Caron, ResMusica
“At 10 years of age, the quartet has reached a maturity that does not prevent its freshness and ardour from being expressed. It is a bit offbeat, but always in its rightful place: at the top!“ - Pierre Aimar, arts-spectacles.com
Ensemble & Instrumentation
Lessons with:
Hatto Beyerle, Eberhard Felt, Johannes Meissl, Gábor Takács-Nagy, Gordan Nicoli, Goran Gribajecvic.Charlotte Maclet - Violin 1
Leslie Boulin Raulet - Violin 2
Sarah Chenaf - Viola
Juliette Salmona - Cello
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