About

Maja Horvat, Sara Wolstenholme, violins
Gary Pomeroy, viola
Christopher Murray, cello

One of the most acclaimed British string quartets, The Heath Quartet has built a strong reputation for its dynamic and committed performances.

Established in 2002 at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, the quartet was selected for representation by YCAT, won the 2008 TROMP competition, and the 2012 Ensemble Prize at the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, where they are now regular visitors. In 2013 they became the first ensemble in fifteen years to win the prestigious RPS Young Artists Award and in 2016 they won the GRAMOPHONE Chamber Award for their recording of the complete Tippett quartets.

The Tippett album was followed by two discs recorded for Harmonia Mundi/PIAS and part-funded by a BBT Special Ensemble Scholarship, featuring Tchaikovsky’s First and Third quartets (BBC Radio 3's Disc of the Week) and the complete Bartók quartets (2017 Limelight Chamber Music Award; nominated for 2018 GRAMOPHONE Chamber Award). Their most recent album for Signum Records brings together works by Berg, Webern and Schoenberg, with soprano Carolyn Sampson.

Recent highlights include a two-season residency at Berlin’s Pierre Boulez Saal, their Barcelona debut in Palau de la Musica Catalana, a Beethoven series at Bath Festival, debuts at Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Saffron Hall and Cheltenham Festival, as well as concerts at Handelsbeurs Ghent, Aldeburgh and Norfolk & Norwich festivals.

"The delicate perfection of the sound was a marvel.." (Daily Telegraph)

The 2023/24 season included a tour of the USA, a live broadcast with Steven Osborne for the BBC Proms, and an appearance on BBC Radio 4's How to Play; a special programme exploring Schubert's Death and the Maiden. The quartet continued its long association with Wigmore Hall with a four-concert series, and gave the inaugural concert at the newly renovated Brighton Dome Corn Exchange. The quartet enjoyed collaborations with, amongst others, Tom Poster and the Elias String Quartet.

This season the quartet will collaborate with hornists Ben Goldscheider and Alec Frank-Gemmill, pianist Tim Horton and clarinettist/composer Jörg Widmann.

The Heath Quartet are staff members at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, and in 2025 became String Quartet in Residence at Middlesex University.

Live

Date Location Time
June 17th 2025 St Andrew's Church, Aldborough, N Yorkshire 7.30pm
June 24th 2025 Aldeburgh Church, Victoria Road, Aldeburgh 2pm
July 9th 2025 St Mary’s Church, Rhossili 2pm
July 10th 2025 St Rhidian & St Illtyd’s Church, Llanrhidian 7.30pm
August 30th 2025 Langton-by-Spilsby, Lincolnshire 6.30pm
October 5th 2025 Lower Machen, Newport, Wales 2.30pm
September 8th 2025 St John's Church, Waterloo, London 6pm
October 9th 2025 Morpeth Methodist Church 7.30pm
October 10th 2025 St. Paul's Church, Wooburn 8pm
October 11th 2025 Chapel Hall Arts, Fressingfield, Suffolk 7.30pm
October 12th 2025 John Innes Centre, Norwich 3pm
December 30th 2025 Great Hall, Dartington, Devon 5.30pm
December 31st 2025 Great Hall, Dartington, Devon 12pm
December 31st 2025 Great Hall, Dartington, Devon 6pm
January 1st 2026 Great Hall, Dartington, Devon 12pm
January 1st 2026 Great Hall, Dartington, Devon 5.30pm

On Disc

Bartok: String Quartets HMM907661/2
Limelight Magazine Recording of the Year & Chamber Recording of the Year 2017
Shortlisted for Gramophone Chamber Award 2018

Tchaikovsky: String Quartets 1&3 HMU 907665/2
BBC Radio 3 Disk of the Week
The Sunday Times Disk of the Week

Tippett: String Quartets WHLIVE0080/2
GRAMOPHONE Award Winner 2016

Berg: String Quartet - Webern: Langsamer Satz -
Schoenberg: String Quartet No.2
SIGCD712
BBC Radio 3 Disk of the Week
Presto Music Recording of the Week

Bracing Change 2 - Grime: String Quartet No.2 NMCD242
Gramophone Editor's Choice

    Heath Quartet at Apple Music

Projects

FIDELIO

In September 2013 we appeared onstage in English National Opera's production of Beethoven's Fidelio. Climbing into cages during the interval, we descended from above the proscenium arch at the opera's climax to play Beethoven's Heiliger Dankgesang from his Opus 132 quartet. Read more

THE STRING QUARTET'S GUIDE TO SEX AND ANXIETY

In May 2018 we worked with director Calixto Bieito and actors Cathy Tyson, Mairead McKinley, Miltos Yerolemou and Nick Harris in an unique production created by Birmingham REP and Brighton Festival. Read more

TAVENER REQUIEM FRAGMENTS

It was an unforgettable experience to be part of the world premiere of Sir John Tavener's Requiem Fragments - his final completed work - with the Tallis Scholars and Carolyn Sampson, at the 2014 BBC Proms. Read more

Contact

    USA: Lee Prinz, Colbert Artists Management prinz@colbertartists.com

    UK & Europe: heathquartet@gmail.com

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