Emma Purslow - violin

Marike Kruup - violin

Claire Newton - viola

Jobine Siekman - cello 

Programme - 11 November 2022

Caroline Shaw Entr’acte 

Henriëtte Bosmans String Quartet

Ethel Smyth String Quartet in C minor II Adagio

Fanny Mendelssohn String Quartet in E-flat major IV Allegro molto vivace 

Haydn - String Quartet in G major, Op. 76 No. 1

The Alkyona Quartet present fresh, imaginative interpretations of both well-known and hidden gems of the string quartet repertoire. They are well known for their warm connection to audiences and vivacious performances, and are ‘as vibrant and memorable as their ‘Kingfisher’ namesake’. They were Tunnell Trust Award Holders 20/21 and Making Music Selected Artists 21/22, and Royal College of Music String Quartet Fellows 2022/23.

They have performed in many leading UK venues including St Martin in the Fields, St John Smith Square and the Royal Albert Hall, as well as at many music societies both at home and abroad. They were New Generation Artists at the Stift International Music Festival 2019 and residents at Music at Brel the same year, as well as being featured at the Huygens Festival 2020 & 2021 which were broadcasted live on Dutch TV channel Midvliet. They look forward to a variety of engagements in the 2022/2023 season, including the Lichfield Festival, a creative concert series at the Sir John Soane Museum and launching the Huygens Festival 2022.

The quartet love collaborations across the arts and this year hold a residency at Leighton House Museum, where they have been running events, concerts and salons both online and in person. They released their debut album, “Intimate Letters’ in June 2020 in collaboration with Cegin Productions. As a quartet they especially enjoy cross-collaborative projects, and have worked closely with Latin American band Quimantu, film makers, Tabla player Kuljit Bhamra MBE, actress Saskia Reeves, percussionist Adriano Adewale, composer Caroline Heslop and dance company the Dutch Don’t Dance Division. The quartet have studied with Richard Lester, Marc Danel, Ben Hancox, Rafael Todes, Catherine Manson, James Boyd and Mark Messenger. The quartet is mentored by Marc Danel of the Danel Quartet in Holland as part of the National String Quartet Academy, and took part in the European Chamber Music Academy 2020.  

Outreach is an important part of their work and they are one of the ‘Young Professional’ quartets of Project String Quartet UK. Equally at home in education settings, the quartet have given masterclasses and side by side performances at numerous schools including Repton School, St Paul’s Boy’s School and Ipswich School, where they led the string section of the Festival of Music two years running. 

The quartet is grateful for sponsorship for their studies and projects to the RCM Director’s Fund; The Tunnell Trust; the Dutch National Music Instrument Foundation for the loan of Jobine’s C.18th  Lefebvre cello and the Harrison-Frank Foundation for the loan of Emma’s 1713 Venetian violin.