Aroha Quartet

Aroha String Quartet    Acclaimed as demonstrating "accomplished brilliance, soulfulness and sublime intensity in perfect balance and tonal unity" (The Dominion Post), the Aroha String Quartet is firmly established as one of New Zealand's finest chamber music ensembles.    Founded in 2004, this versatile Wellington-based quartet is known for its passionate musicality, impressive technique, and multicultural innovation.    Haihong Liu and Zhongxian Jin are original members of the Aroha Quartet. Robert Ibell joined the group in 2009 and Konstanze Artmann in late 2018.    The Aroha Quartet is committed to presenting string quartet works from western classical and avant-garde repertoire to traditional Chinese folk music, as well as works for larger forces through collaborations with numerous high-profile musicians.    The Aroha Quartet performs regularly around New Zealand in centres from the Deep South to the Far North. In 2014 they performed five concerts as part of Chamber Music New Zealand's Kaleidoscope series.     Overseas trips have seen them participate in the prestigious International Summer Academy in Austria in 2010, give concerts and masterclasses in China in 2010 and 2013, and perform at the Huntington Music Festival in Australia in 2011.    In 2022 the ASQ performed their programme of clarinet quintets with Rachel Vernon in many towns and cities across Aotearoa.    The members of the the Aroha Quartet are committed educators. The Quartet runs the annual ASQ International Music Academy, a week-long chamber music course in Wellington, and the ASQ International Music Academy in Asia, an equivalent course in China. They also undertake a variety of educational projects around New Zealand each year.    The Aroha Quartet presents a programme brimful of life, colour and contrasts. It begins with the lovely simplicity of Mozart's String Quartet in B-flat K589, one of three works that he wrote with the cello-playing King of Prussia, Friedrich Wilhelm II, in mind.    The second work is the world premiere of ‘Arohanui’ written by Auckland based composer Kirsten Strom. Dedicated to the Aroha String Quartet, the piece is inspired by a true story from New Zealand history.     We round off the concert with Schubert's masterpiece, his Death and the Maiden String Quartet in D min D810. One of the most famous pieces of chamber music ever written, this powerful work is chock-full of melodic invention.    Programme    Mozart - String Quartet No 22 in B-flat K 589 (24')   Kirsten Strom - ‘Arohanui’ (11’)   

• interval -    Schubert - String Quartet No 14 in D min D 810 Death and the Maiden (40')