AGNÈS SULEM BIALOBRODA (Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Lyon, France)
16 February @14.15-16.00 in A-404
17 February @15.00-19.00 in A-404
18 February @14.00-16.00, @17.00 lecture on the music by G. Fauré in A-404
19 February @14.00-19.00 in A-404
Agnès Sulem-Bialobroda is the first violinist of the Rosamonde Quartet since its founding in 1981, with which she pursues an intense activity of concerts and recordings. She has been Professor of Chamber Music, string quartet class, at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Lyon since 2012, where she also coordinates the Chamber Music Department. She is regularly invited to give international masterclasses, and is a mentor within the international educational programme Musethica.
Heir to the great French school of string quartet playing, the Rosamonde String Quartet studied at the Paris Conservatoire and subsequently at Yale University. Its encounters and long collaboration with Raphaël Hillyer, violist of the Juilliard Quartet, and Eugen Lehner, violist of the Kolisch Quartet and a close friend of Schoenberg and Bartók, proved decisive, enabling the ensemble, from its very beginning, to benefit from the teaching of the great masters of the twentieth century. The quartet stands out for its deep mastery of the Classical and Romantic repertoire, a particular affinity with French music, and a constant commitment to contemporary composers with fruitful collaborations with major composers of our time, including Henri Dutilleux, Pierre Boulez and György Kurtág.
The Rosamonde String Quartet was awarded several distinctions: the Prize for the Interpretation of Modern Composers and the Special Prize of the International Critics’ Jury, awarded unanimously at the International Competition of Evian (1983), followed by the First Prize at the International String Quartet Competition of the European Broadcasting Union in Salzburg (1986). Since then, the Rosamonde String Quartet has pursued an international career, performing in major concert halls and festivals.
International critics have praised the beauty of its sound, the accuracy of its style, and the refinement and elegance of its phrasing.
The Rosamonde String Quartet’s discography comprises twenty-five CDs and DVDs released on the Harmonia Mundi, Arion, Fuga Libera, ZigZag Territoires,Transart, and Éditions Jade labels, many of which have received the highest distinctions. It reflects the ensemble’s commitment to exploring the widest possible repertoire, from the Viennese Classics to twentieth-century music and contemporary creation.
The Quartet’s most recent recordings are devoted to Beethoven’s late string quartets (2022) and the great Viennese repertoire of the first and second Viennese school : Viennese Legacy I (2023) Viennese Legacy II (2025).
Two documentary films devoted to the Rosamonde String Quartet have been directed by Vincent Bataillon: “Ainsi la Nuit” bears witness to the Quartet’s long collaboration with Henri Dutilleux, while Notes pour un Quatuor explores the creative process involved in the interpretation of Beethoven’s string quartets.
Alongside her activities as a chamber musician and pedagogue, Agnès Sulem-Bialobroda has performed as a soloist with several orchestras, including the Ensemble Inter-contemporain, the orchestras of Radio France, Cannes, Nice, among others. She collaborates regularly with the Orchestre de Paris and the Ensemble Symphonique de Genève.
Agnès Sulem-Bialobroda studied at the Paris Conservatoire, where she obtained a First Prize in Violin and a First Prize in Chamber Music. Agnès Sulem-Bialobroda is Chevalier de l’Ordre de la Légion d’Honneur (France’s highest decoration).