Parisii String Quartet

Jean-Philippe Martignoni, cello
Arnaud Vallin, first violin
Dominique Lobet, viola
Jean-Michel Berrette, second violin

The Quatuor Parisii String Quartet was established by four students of the Conservatoire National Superieur de Paris in 1981. During their studies, all four musicians were receivers of the best students’ awards both in the category of instruments and chamber music. They have worked together in close harmony since the formation of the quartet, and as a result they have developed together a broad repertoire as well as a unique style.
The Quartet’s multifarious interest and enthusiasm includes the string quartets of Boccherini, Beethoven, Brahms, Weber as well as contemporary music. The Parisii String Quartet was the first quartet which recorded a CD of Pierre Boulez’s Livre pour quator. At the same time, they participated in numerous other contemporary pieces’ first performance in France and in other countries. Among others, they performed pieces of Gilbert Amy, Gérard Pesson, Philippe Boivin, Garcia Roman, Tomas Marco and Richard Rodney Bennett.
Numerous CDs and prizes testify the diversity of the chamber orchestra’s repertoire and success: Debussy, Ravel – the Télérama’s ffff, and the Monde de La Musique’s Choc’s award; Fauré, Franck and Webern – the Nouvelle Académie’s du disque award. Critics unanimously appreciated the record of Reynaldo Hahn’s chamber music, recorded in collaboration with two other string quartets and a piano quintet. Recordings, such as Livre pour quartor (2001) by Pierre Boulez, or String Quartet No. 18 by Darius Milhaud (April, 2002), show Quator Parisii String Quartet’s bravery, as well as its commitment to 20th century composers.
After Boulez’s Livre pour quator came out, the audience could hear this legendary piece for the first time on the string quartet’s American and European tour.