"Esmé Quartet will no doubt continue to be ‘esteemed’ and ‘beloved’ when the remainder of Australia hears their performances of such an endearing programme."
Sydney Arts Guide, 8th May 2024 by Paul Nolan
“The most impressive concert!”
Canberra City News, 10th May 2024 by Graham McDonald
"It is clear they all have exceptional and precise command of their instruments and alongside this, their artistry is sublime."
Stage Whispers, 3rd May 2024 by Lisa Lanzi
★★★★★ "Esmé Quartet have earnt every accolade. Their playing is technically precise, passionately controlled, subtly assertive, and above all, musically intelligent. Their love for music and for playing together is tangible. And although, as Murrath said in his introduction, there was no particular theme to the program, it yet came together as a fully curated whole, almost working as eleven movements of the one work. Going by the reaction of the audience on Wednesday night, there is no doubt Australia will call these sublime artists back soon. Meanwhile we can rest easy, knowing that the future of chamber music is in great hands!"
Glam Adelaide, 3rd May 2024 by Tracey Korsten
“An intense, compact listening experience from a young quartet with an enviable reputation for elegance, precision and energy.”
Limelight, 30th April 2024 by Will Yeoman
“High density rich expression, flexible phrasing, and exquisite sense of sound balance are alluring!”
Ongakuno Tomo, May 2024 by Tsutomu Nasuda
“If one had to choose a “Death and the Maiden” for that desert island playlist, the Esmé’s performance of Schubert’s famed String Quartet No.14 would surely be right up there. There are any number of moments one could cite, but suffice to say that was memorable and moving for its precision, the unrelenting energy of the finale, and for the interpretational depth the four players brought to a work of beauty and drama.”
South China Morning Post, 2nd March 2023 by Christopher Halls
“Here are four young instrumentalists that play with depth and maturity, which, and even this cliché can be swept off the table, does not depend on age. Yet Beethoven is always considered a risk, especially when it is the six-movement Opus 130 B flat major Quartet surrounded by an enigmatic aura, and most especially the finale - Grosse Fugue. What the Esmé Quartet makes out of it speaks entirely for itself."
Süddeutsche Zeitung, 18th February 2019 by Paul Schäufele