Eric Avery @eric.aviolin is one of these special people that has natural magnetism and charisma - when he starts moving to dance, it is one of the most graceful and naturally beautiful things we have witnessed. We’ve never met anyone like him - violinist, dancer, composer and singer. If you’re ready to be completely transported and bowled over by beauty in music, sound and dance - don’t miss it!
And to add, there’s Ravel and Nicole Brady’s Ricochet - it’s a true feast of colour and imagination.
Performing from May 9 to May 18
Photos by @the.cwolf - thanks Josh!!!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Elizabeth Sellars and Wilma Smith (violins), Helen Ireland (viola) and Zoe Knighton (cello) have wisdom, empathy and virtuosity at their fingertips. Collectively, they bring every note to life with their shared vision and warmth.”
Thank you Sue Kaufmann and @limelightartsau ! We (and our audiences) have been loving this program. Final performance tonight at Melbourne Recital Centre, there are just a few tickets left - get in quick!
It’s happening!
Southern hemisphere premiere performances of Olli Mustonen’s Second string quartet no. 2 are here 🙌
What a privilege to bring this extraordinary work to life.
Snippets from recent rehearsals (watch to the end for an out take 😉)
Beethoven Sibelius and Harrison too - a satisfying and meaty program.
Thursday March 26
St. John’s Southgate 1pm
Friday March 27
Geelong Chamber Music Society 7:30 pm
Saturday March 28
St John’s Flinders 2:30pm
Sunday March 29
Montsalvat Barn Gallery 2:30pm
Tuesday March 31
Melbourne Recital Centre Primrose Potter Salon 7pm
#stringquartet #premiere #secondviolinshavemorefun #chambermusic
Yes - it’s true. Finnish powerhouse Olli Mustonen has written us a brand-new string quartet… and it’s a cracker.
From the very first read-through we were hooked. It’s gripping, inventive, and somehow feels instantly inevitable - as though the piece has always existed and we’ve just discovered it.
For us, it’s a little like having a couture creation designed personally by Vivienne Westwood. Mustonen is that revered on the international stage.
As Olli says:
“All great music is some sort of dialogue between intuitive processes and analytical thinking.”
Find the concert details on our website: /whats-on
📸 @agathayim@polyphonicpictures
Happy birthday to our very own superwoman, Wilma Smith 🎉
We genuinely don’t know how she fits so much into a single day - rehearsing, performing, organising tours, running her own chamber series, rescuing major international competitions before breakfast… and still radiating joy while doing it.
We lovingly call her “bionic,” because honestly, she seems indestructible.
Everything Wilma touches turns to gold with a kind of dazzling ease that makes the rest of us both inspired and wondering how she does everything without drinking coffee. And yes, her extraordinary Guadagnini helps… but let’s be honest: she’d sound like a goddess on a cereal box with strings.
Happiest of birthdays, Wilma. We adore you, we’re in awe of you, and Australia’s music scene is infinitely brighter (and busier) because of you 💛
📸 Agatha Yim, Polyphonic Pictures
As part of our residency at @resonancestringorchestra , Zoe was in conductor mode last weekend.
One of the best group of people you’ll ever meet, this crowd is welcoming, energised and ready to premiere @roberttmcintyre ’s "Bushfire Skies" alongside Flinders Quartet in November. Stay tuned for concert details.
If you know anyone in the Central Victorian area (not era…) who is looking for some string buddies, point them to: .au/.
We love rehearsing at Library at the Dock, and today we’ll be there from 11am–4pm. (With a lunch break for coffee - we may well visit @saluministi.paninoteca . They also do excellent Italian fare!)
Take tram 11 or 48 to the final stop - where, improbably, Bourke Street and Collins Street meet - and you’ll find the library right by the water.
Drop in, say hello, and listen as we work through Beethoven’s Op.18 No.4.
We’ll even take requests… (provided they’re on the upcoming program 😉)
@cityofmelbourne@cityofmelbournelibraries
Ever wondered what really happens inside a rehearsal?
Join us as we delve deep into Beethoven’s Op.18 No.4 and breathe life into Olli Mustonen’s String Quartet No.2 ahead of its Southern Hemisphere premiere.
This is your chance to see how we dissect the music, experiment, and decide how the dots on the page become sound. Rehearsals are where the real work - and the real magic - happens.
📍 Library at the Dock (foyer), Docklands
🗓 Thursday 19 March
⏰ 11:00am to 2:30pm
Drop in, stay for a while, listen up close.
📸 @agathayim@polyphonicpictures@cityofmelbourne@cityofmelbournelibraries
Creative development is where the magic begins 🎶
We began the year with an inspiring development day alongside First Peoples artist @eric_avery_music , our guest for Program Two 'Voices Between Worlds' in May.
Eric arrived with a beautifully handwritten manuscript. Together, we explored a work that weaves composition, voice and movement with our own improvisation.
We left the day completely captivated.
This month, Wilma performs Beethoven’s String Quartet No.4 in C minor, Op.18 No.4 for the very first time.
“After nearly a lifetime of playing quartets, I still haven’t played all of the Beethovens! Op.18 No.4 is on my never-played list so this performance will be a personal premiere.”
We love that even after decades of quartet playing, there are still firsts!
Join us for this powerful program of Beethoven, Olli Mustonen, Sibelius and Holly Harrison.
26–31 March 2026
Multiple venues across Victoria
Bookings & info via the What's On link in our bio
📸 @agathayim@polyphonicpictures
In next month’s concerts, we’re pairing the Mustonen premiere with Sibelius’ Voces Intimae, a work that holds a special place in our hearts.
We last performed it in Finland at the Korpo Festival, where we played the complete Sibelius quartets. Those memories remain vivid.
There is something intensely emotional about this music. It feels inward, searching, intimate... and then suddenly vast. We can’t wait to return to it.
FROM SILENCE AND SNOW
26–31 March 2026
Melbourne, Geelong, Flinders, Eltham
Bookings & info via the What’s On link in our bio
📸 FQ in Finland in 2015, with Folke Graäsbeck (Finnish pianist and Sibelius scholar)
Are radio interviews supposed to be this much fun?? 🥰😂
First interview recorded with the marvellous Andy Ford and Zoe Knighton for our epic 5-year collaborative venture "The Eötvös Cycle"!
#themusicshow
#soexcited😍
