The Australian String Quartet has announced its 2027 program, with two national tours, festival weekends in Victoria and Western Australia, and collaborations that will take the Adelaide-based ensemble from Darwin to regional Victoria.
“Every encounter with music is an opportunity for curiosity, connection and discovery,” said ASQ violinist Francesca Hiew. “The year is shaped by moments that continue to celebrate the wonder, richness and human connection of the string quartet.”
National tours
The touring year opens in April with Unleashed, a program pairing Mozart’s radiant String Quartet in G Major with Grażyna Bacewicz’s folk-inspired String Quartet No. 4 and Shostakovich’s profound String Quartet No. 3, written in the shadow of war and personal struggle.
Portraits follows in August and September, featuring works by György Kurtág, Robert Schumann and Philip Glass alongside the world premiere of The Cattery, a new string quartet by Australian composer Alice Chance. Commissioned through the ASQ Richard Divall Australian Music Fund, the work marks Chance’s third string quartet for the ensemble.
“It’s a genuine thrill to be commissioned,” Chance said. “Ever since writing Nose Scrunch Reel for the ensemble in 2020 and seeing the life the piece has taken on since, I’ve been dreaming about what I could write next for these extraordinary musicians.”
Festivals and collaborations
The ASQ’s bespoke festival experiences return in 2027, beginning in March with the Dunkeld Festival of Music in Victoria’s Southern Grampians. The Quartet will perform alongside Scottish classical accordionist James Crabb and Australian pianist Daniel de Borah.
Crabb joins the ensemble again in November for the Margaret River Weekend of Music, combining chamber music with the hospitality of one of Australia’s finest wine regions.
Collaborations throughout the year include performances with Melbourne Chamber Orchestra in Kinship, Corpus Medicorum in Absolute Jest, and the Darwin Symphony Orchestra in partnership with Arafura Music Collective for a Beethoven Festival in May. Those Darwin performances will mark 200 years since Beethoven’s death and the ASQ’s return to the Top End following their 2022 visit.
Nurturing the next generation
As Quartet-in-Residence at Adelaide University’s Elder Conservatorium of Music and School of Performing Arts, the ASQ will continue its mentoring work with emerging musicians. The Elder Conservatorium’s String Quartet Weekends in May and September offer ensembles from Australia and New Zealand the opportunity to develop their craft under the guidance of the ASQ and other leading chamber musicians.
“These projects reflect the many ways we connect with people through music, from major festivals and concert stages to deep and enduring community partnerships,” said ASQ Chief Executive Officer Angelina Zucco.
Tickets for the ASQ’s 2027 national tours and festivals are on sale from 11am ACST, Wednesday 30 September 2026. For bookings visit asq.com.au or call 1800 040 444 during business hours.
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