ENSEMBLE · STRING QUARTET
Verona Quartet
#1 Billboard Classical
SHATTER, an album evoking the breaking of the glass ceiling Cleveland Quartet
Award-winning ensemble Oberlin
Quartet-in-Residence ABOUT
The Verona Quartet is recognized as a premier ensemble of its generation, praised by The New York Times as an “outstanding ensemble… cohesive yet full of temperament.” Recipients of the 2020 Chamber Music America Cleveland Quartet Award and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Association’s 2025 Educator Award, the ensemble has earned a reputation for its “bold interpretive strength” (Calgary Herald) and “opulent sonority” (The Strad). The Quartet serves on the faculty of Oberlin College and Conservatory as Quartet-in-Residence and as Artistic Directors of the Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance. The ensemble’s rise to international prominence was fueled by a swift succession of top prize wins at Wigmore Hall, Melbourne, Osaka, M-Prize, and Fischoff International Chamber Music Competitions, as well as the 2015 Concert Artists Guild Competition.
A string quartet for the 21st century, the Verona Quartet pairs versatile programming with imaginative collaborations that bridge the time-honored canon and new, interdisciplinary works. Notable commissions and premieres include works by composers Christopher Theofanidis, Julia Adolphe, Texu Kim, and Sebastian Currier, as well as Michael Gilbertson’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated Quartet. The Quartet recently celebrated several world premieres, including a work for string quartet, yangqin (Chinese dulcimer), and dancer by Cheng Jin Koh, commissioned by The Smithsonian Institution in honor of the centennial of the Freer Gallery of Art. The 2025 season marks the launch of a new project with American tenor Ben Bliss, featuring the American Songbook alongside art song literature. Past ventures highlight the group's versatility, ranging from live-performance art installations with artist Ana Prvački to collaborations with the Grammy-winning folk trio I’m With Her.
The Quartet’s recording catalog reflects this same spirit of exploration. Their second album, SHATTER, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Traditional Classical Chart in 2023, showcasing works written for the ensemble by Julia Adolphe and Michael Gilbertson, alongside Reena Esmail’s Ragamala with Hindustani vocalist Saili Oak. This followed their debut album Diffusion, praised by BBC Music Magazine for its "radiant glow," and a 2023 release of György Ligeti’s complete string quartet cycle. In 2026, the quartet will release their fourth album featuring the string quartets of Felix Mendelssohn.
Read full biography
The Verona Quartet has appeared across four continents, captivating audiences at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, Jordan Hall, and Wigmore Hall. They have performed at festivals including the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, La Jolla Summerfest, Chamber Music Northwest, and Bravo! Vail. In addition to its position at Oberlin, the Quartet is featured in annual residencies at the ENCORE Chamber Music Institute and North Carolina’s Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle.
In the 2025–26 season, the Verona Quartet maintains an active schedule with appearances at the Cleveland Chamber Music Society, Telluride Chamber Music, and Montreal’s Ladies Morning Music Club. The ensemble also returns to the Howland Chamber Music Circle and the University of Hartford, while making debuts with Newport Classical and the Spire Center. Collaborative highlights include tours with guitarist Lukasz Kuropaczewski, pianist Henry Kramer, and saxophonist Steven Banks, alongside a string octet program featuring the Borromeo String Quartet. In 2026, the Quartet returns to the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival to collaborate with clarinetist David Shifrin.
The Verona Quartet takes its name from the city of Verona, paying tribute to William Shakespeare and the belief that the spirit of storytelling transcends genre. The Verona Quartet are D’Addario Artists and The Violin Channel Artists.
PRESS & REVIEWS
What the critics say
“An outstanding ensemble…cohesive yet full of temperament.”
— The New York Times
“Rich carpet of tone…opulent sonority”
— The Strad
“impressive synergy between members and seamless transitions made for an atmospheric performance par excellence”
— South China Morning Post
“the Verona underlined the work's deep and songful wisdom in a profoundly centred interpretation”
— The Strad
VIDEOS
Videos
2026-27
Programs & Repertoire
Program One
Beginnings - Apex - Farewell
- Beethoven String Quartet No. 2, Op. 18, No. 2
- Bartók String Quartet No. 4
- Intermission
- Dvořák String Quartet No. 14, Op. 105
Program Two
Song Book
- Barber String Quartet in B minor, Op. 11
- Stephen Hartke Night Songs for a Desert Flower
- Intermission
- George Walker Lyric for Strings
- Dvořák String Quartet No. 14, Op. 105
Created for the United States' 250th anniversary, an American songbook for string quartet.
Program Three
Soundtrack
- Korngold String Quartet No. 2, Op. 26
- Philip Glass String Quartet No. 3 'Mishima'
- Intermission
- Beethoven String Quartet No. 14, Op. 131
Program One
Quartettsatz
- Schubert Quartettsatz in C minor, D. 703
- Philip Glass Quartet Satz
- Tchaikovsky String Quartet Movement in B-flat major
- Intermission
- Schubert String Quartet No. 15 in G major, D. 887
Marking the 200th anniversary of Schubert's death.
Program Two
O Albion
- Haydn String Quartet, Op. 74, No. 3 'The Rider'
- Thomas Adès Arcadiana, Op. 12
- Intermission
- Britten String Quartet No. 2, Op. 36
Program Three
Blueprint
- Beethoven String Quartet No. 10, Op. 74
- Mendelssohn String Quartet No. 1, Op. 12
- Intermission
- Shostakovich String Quartet No. 3, Op. 73
On Stage
Featured Projects
An American Story
Tenor & String Quartet
Tenor Ben Bliss and the [Verona Quartet](https://mkiartists.com/artists/verona-quartet) trace an American journey in “An American Story,” weaving jazz-age standards by Nat King Cole, Benny Goodman, and Glenn Miller in new arrangements by Peter Myers together with English art song by Rubbra and Bax and contemporary voices including Rhiannon Giddens and Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate.
American Anthem
String Quintet (two violas)
For “American Anthem,” the [Verona Quartet](https://mkiartists.com/artists/verona-quartet) is joined by violist Jordan Bak for a program of string works enriched by the added sonority of a second viola. At its heart is Dvořák’s “American” Quintet, written during the composer’s 1893 summer in Spillville, Iowa. Springing from that tradition, Kenji Bunch’s String Circle celebrates contemporary Americana and its fiddle and bluegrass roots, while George Walker’s pensive Lyric for Strings opens the program with a bittersweet reflection that looks ahead to the voice that earned Walker the Pulitzer Prize.
Peter Pan
String quartet with narration
As part of their Global Storybook series of family concerts, the [Verona Quartet](https://mkiartists.com/artists/verona-quartet) is developing a newly commissioned work inspired by Peter Pan. Conceived in the spirit of Peter and the Wolf, the program pairs live storytelling with music for audiences of all ages. The composer and premiere season will be announced.
Verona Quartet & Simone Dinnerstein
Piano Quintet
The [Verona Quartet](https://mkiartists.com/artists/verona-quartet) joins pianist [Simone Dinnerstein](https://mkiartists.com/artists/simone-dinnerstein) for a program that bridges contemporary minimalism and the Romantic piano quintet tradition. At its center is Philip Glass’s The Hours, heard alongside the world premiere of a new work by composer Texu Kim and beloved piano quintets from the standard repertoire.
Verona Quartet & Steven Banks
Saxophone & String Quartet
Saxophonist and composer Steven Banks joins the [Verona Quartet](https://mkiartists.com/artists/verona-quartet) for a program built around two of his own works for saxophone and string quartet. The collaboration extends into the studio, where the artists are recording a new album for Phenotypic, with touring programs available to presenters.