The Australia Piano Quartet

Introducing the performers…

Rebecca Chan violin
Daniel de Borah piano
Thomas Rann cello
James Wannan viola

The Australia Piano Quartet (APQ) have been Ensemble in Residence at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) since 2012. Their busy performance schedule includes a series presented by the Sydney Opera House and Melbourne Recital Centre, as well as international tours throughout Europe and Asia. Following a successful debut at London’s Barbican Centre in 2015, APQ return to the UK in 2016 for performances at Wigmore Hall and the Holywell Music Room, Oxford, as well as touring China, France and Italy.

In addition to their exploration of canonic masterpieces of the piano quartet repertoire, the ensemble are committed to unearthing neglected works of past and present, while championing the creation of new work. To date they have commissioned over 20 new piano quartets from a diverse range of established and emerging Australian composers, including Elliott Gyger, Elena Kats-Chernin, Jack Symonds, Paul Dean and William Barton.

As Ensemble in Residence at UTS, APQ actively collaborate across multiple disciplines and engage in a uniquely innovative dialogue with the wider community of students, academic staff, guest artists and the general public. A highlight of ther residency in 2016 is a new composition created with inventor Jordan Nguyen, which enables individuals with high-level disability to perform with APQ using cutting-edge technology. APQ are also further expanding their existing education and outreach programmes, encompassing mentoring of talented young instrumentalists and workshops and performances in association with the Australian Centre for Childhood and Youth. The Australia Piano Quartet’s UTS series is generously supported by Kawai Australia.

APQ’s performances have been broadcast on Foxtel Arts (2015 Helpmann Awards), ABC Classic FM and BBC Radio 3. In 2017, the ensemble will release their first disc, Mozart’s complete works for piano quartet.

“Rarely have I been so impressed by a new ensemble. A combination of formidable pedigree of training, flawless technique, impressive musical intelligence, profound sensitivity and performance élan leads me to draw the analogy of there being evidence here of the ingredients of a true vintage wine which can only get better with age.”

Arts Hub, December 2015

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