Esme Quartet to Debut on the 9th, Winner of Germany's Hans Gal Prize

From the left, Bae Won-hee, Kim Ji-won, Heo Ye-eun, Ha Yu-na [Photo by Credia]

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] On the 9th, the string quartet Esm? Quartet (photo), which is holding its debut concert at Lotte Concert Hall, was announced by the performance planning company Credia on the 8th to have won the Hans Gal Prize in Germany.

The Hans Gal Prize is an award jointly operated by the Mainz Science and Literature Foundation in Germany and the Villa Musica Foundation, a leading music sponsorship foundation in Germany. Esm? Quartet became the first ensemble to win first place in the Hans Gal Prize. This is also the first time a Korean has received a music award given by the German Literature Foundation. Esm? Quartet will receive a prize of 10,000 euros and an opportunity to perform sponsored by the Musica Foundation. The award ceremony will be held on October 29 in Mainz, Germany.

The Hans Gal Prize was established to commemorate the achievements of Hans Gal (1890?1987), a composer and educator who served as the director of the Mainz Music Academy. Hans Gal was born in Austria in 1890, achieved considerable success in the 1920s, and was appointed director of the Mainz Music Academy in 1929.

Esm? Quartet was formed in October 2016, centered around leader Wonhee Bae (33, first violin), with Ha Yuna (29, second violin), Kim Ji-won (28, viola), and Heo Ye-eun (28, cello). Shortly after formation, they won first place at the Cologne University of Music Chamber Music Competition and subsequently placed in competitions such as the Trondheim International Chamber Music Competition in Norway the following year. In April 2018, they became the first Korean chamber ensemble to win the prestigious Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition in London, growing into a world-class ensemble.

At their debut concert on the 9th at Lotte Concert Hall, Esm? Quartet will perform Jin Eun-sook’s string quartet "Parametastrin," Mozart’s "String Quartet No. 14," Daniel Galitzki’s "Song of Londonderry," and Schubert’s string quartet "Death and the Maiden."

Among these, "Parametastrin" is also included in Esm? Quartet’s debut album "To be Loved," released in February this year by the French record label Alpha Classics. "Parametastrin" was premiered by the Kronos Quartet at the Seoul Arts Center in 1996, and Esm? Quartet made the world’s first recording of the piece 23 years after its composition.

Esm? Quartet plans to release their second album next year through the UK’s Champs Hill record label.