From left, Rebecca Wenham, Min-Jeong Koh, Caitlin Boyle and Sarah Nematallah, members of the Cecilia String Quartet, which performed at the Toronto Summer Music Festival Aug. 6 with the Tokai String Quartet.Picasa 3.0
They said they wanted to play so well that the jurors would forget it was a competition, and the Cecilia String Quartet succeeded till the very end, when the jury awarded the Canadian ensemble first prize in the Banff International String Quartet Competition.
The Cecilia prevailed over eight other quartets from six countries through five rounds of competition, to win $25,000 in cash, a three-year schedule of concerts in North America and Europe, a recording session at the Banff Centre and a set of custom bows made by Montreal bow-maker François Malo. They also won $2,000 for the best performance of Canadian composer Ana Sokolovic's commissioned piece, Commedia dell'Arte.
The Cecilia (violinists Min-Jeong Koh and Julie Nematallah, violist Caitlin Boyle and cellist Rebecca Wenham) are the first Canadians to win the triennial competition since the St. Laurence String Quartet in 1992. They were followed in second place by another Canadian group, the Afiara Quartet, which won $15,000. France's Quatuor Zaide came third, winning $8,000