The Amber Quartet won three prizes at the finals of the
Asia-Pacific Chamber Music Competition in Melbourne on 14 July. The
Chinese ensemble took the grand prize, the quartets division prize
and the prize for best interpretation of a contemporary work –
Chinese composer Zhang Zhao's 2001 String Quartet no.1
'Totem'.
Formed in 2007 at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, the
Amber Quartet (pictured) comprises violinists Fangliang Ning and
Yajing Su, violist Wang Qi and cellist Yichen Yang. All four have
studied in Beijing with Yun Chen and Bing Yu, and in 2013 were
accepted as a quartet to study at the International Chamber Music
Institute of Madrid, with teachers including Günter Pichler.
In the piano trios division of the competition, the first prize and
the audience prize went to the Lyrebird Trio from Australia. The
Orava Quartet took the prize for best Australian ensemble, as well
as the audience prize in the quartets division.
The Asia-Pacific Chamber Music Competition is held every four
years. Four quartets and four piano trios competed in this year's
competition, following an initial entry by DVD audition.
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