ABOUT US
“One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.”
To follow one’s own path unburdened by pre-defined standards. One that transcends barriers and pushes all boundaries – that is the motto of the Chaos String Quartet. Founded on the principles of the rich interdisciplinary concept of “Chaos”, the ensemble’s members Susanne Schäffer, Eszter Kruchió, Sara Marzadori and Bas Jongen share the firm conviction to overcome shallow, superficial aesthetics by the willingness to explore extremes, to take risks and to welcome the unpredictable. The Quartet embraces Chaos as the primal form of all creativity through which science, art and philosophy unite to become one Gesamtkunstwerk. Despite its relatively short existence, the Chaos String Quartet has already proved themselves as one of the more exciting, independent and innovative ensembles in tomorrow’s music scene.
The group is currently mentored by Johannes Meissl (Artis Quartet) in Vienna and received additional musical training from artists such as Oliver Wille (Kuss Quartet), Clive Brown, Patrick Jüdt, Rainer Schmidt (Hagen Quartet), Hatto Beyerle (Alban Berg Quartet), Asdis Valdimarsdottír (Chilingirian Quartet), Dirk Mommertz (Fauré Quartet), and others. In 2019, the quartet was selected for the prestigious ECMAster (European Chamber Music Master) Programme: an intensive two-year joint study programme with exchange semesters in Vienna, Oslo, and Paris, enabling the group to further master their artistic, technical and social skills as a string quartet.
For the season 2019/2020, the Chaos String Quartet can be heard on concert stages in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Norway, Denmark, Spain and Japan.
The Quartet was recently selected as one of the 10 quartets -out of a pool of 126 applications from 28 countries- to compete in the upcoming prestigious 10th Osaka International Chamber Music Competition scheduled to take place in May 2020.
THE QUARTET
SUSANNE SCHÄFFER
VIOLIN
Born into a musical household, Hungarian-German violinist Susanne Schäffer studied with Dr. Felix Andrievsky in London and Prof. Dora Schwarzberg at the MDW in Vienna, where she graduated with distinction. She is currently completing her studies in chamber music with Prof. Johannes Meissl at her alma mater in Vienna.
Her additional musical mentors include such artists as Hatto Beyerle, Gerhard Schulz, Ferenc Rados and Steven Isserlis.
A prize winner at renowned national and international music competitions, Schäffer regularly performs as a soloist and chamber musician, including concert tours throughout Europe, Israel, Venezuela, the USA and Japan.
Moreover, Susanne is a welcomed guest at prestigious festivals such as the Cully Classique Festival, the ISA Festival, and IMS Prussia Cove. She regularly appears on television, on broadcast and has recorded several CDs.
ESZTER KRUCHIÓ
VIOLIN
Eszter Kruchió started playing the violin at the age of five. Born in 1993 in Budapest and brought up in Vienna, she studied with Ernst Kovacic (Vienna), Tanja Becker-Bender (Hamburg) and Ulf Schneider (Hanover), currently in the postgraduate Solo Performance Class. She received further important musical impulses from Oliver Wille, Eberhard Feltz, Ralf Gothóni, Rita Wagner, Ferenc Rados and Péter Eötvös, among others.
As a winner of several national and international prizes, Eszter has had the chance to perform as a chamber music partner of Thomas Riebl, Tanja Becker-Bender, Péter Nagy, István Várdai and Claudio Martínez-Mehner, as well as with the Castalian, Berlin-Tokyo and Van Kuijk String Quartets. She is a frequent participant of festivals and masterclasses such as Encuentro de Santander, the Davos Festival – Young Artists in Concert, Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker and IMS Prussia Cove.
Eszter plays on a violin by Stefan-Peter Greiner, a generous private loan.
SARA MARZADORI
VIOLA
A devoted chamber- and orchestral musician, Italian violist Sara Marzadori studied with Antonello Farulli in Bologna and Thomas Riebl in Salzburg before earning her master’s degree in 2017 from the Mozarteum Salzburg in the classes of William Coleman and Veronika Hagen.
Furthermore, she studied quartet chamber music with Walter Levin and Oliver Wille in Basel and Hannover, respectively, and received further musical training from Bruno Giuranna, Kim Kashkashian, among others.
Marzadori became a regular member of Orchestra Mozart under the direction of Claudio Abbado after having been admitted to the Orchestra Academy at age 15 and was a member of the EUYO, the Gustav Mahler Academy as well as the Luzern Academy.
Sara won prizes at several instrumental and chamber music competitions, and plays regularly with the Camerata Salzburg, Orchestra Leonore, Spira Mirabilis and the Haydn Philharmonic.
BAS JONGEN
CELLO
Born in the Netherlands, Bas Jongen studied cello in Amsterdam and Zagreb before completing his undergraduate studies with Reinhard Latzko at the MDW in Vienna. In 2017, he obtained his master’s from the Royal College of Music in Stockholm in the class of Torleif Thedéen. Having a keen interest in science, Bas also studies Natural Sciences (Physics) at the Open University.
He received further musical impulses from respected artists such as Heinrich Schiff, Frans Helmerson, Anner Bijlsma, Natalia Gutman as well as Johannes Meissl, Miguel da Silva, Andras Keller and Petr Prause.
A laureate of national and international music competitions, Jongen gave recitals and appeared as a soloist all over Europe, as well as the US, Brazil, Japan, Korea and Australia.
Bas Jongen plays a rare cello by Hendrick Jacobs (Amsterdam, ±1690), kindly loaned to him from the collection of the Dutch National Musical Instruments Foundation.
GALLERY
LISTEN. WATCH. DISCOVER.
Ludwig van Beethoven: Grosse Fuge, Op. 133
Claude Debussy: Quartet in G minor, Op. 10 – I. Animé et très décidé
REPERTOIRE 2019-2020
L. van BEETHOVEN
String Quartet in G Major, Op. 18/2
String Quartet in E Minor, Op. 59/2
String Quartet in B-Flat Major with Grosse Fuge, Op. 130
J. BRAHMS
String Quartet in A minor, Op 51 No. 2
C. DEBUSSY
String Quartet in G minor, Op.10
J. HAYDN
String Quartet in b minor, Op. 64, No. 2
G. LIGETI
String Quartet No. 1 “Metamorphoses Nocturnes”
W. A. MOZART
String Quartet No. 20 in D Major, KV. 499 “Hoffmeister”
A. WEBERN
5 Movements, Op. 5
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