Talos String Quartet.

The Talos Quartet came together in 2023 in Basel out of an unusual curiosity with Ernest Bloch’s rarely performed String Quartet No.1. It was an unorthodox way to form a quartet, but the hours spent discovering this huge one-hour work felt very natural and it soon became clear that all members wanted to invest in the group’s long-term development. It also reflected their shared interest in championing under-performed quartet repertoire, now a large part of their ambition. Their work was soon rewarded with a Tunnell Trust Award, giving them the opportunity to tour in Scotland in 2026. The quartet perform regularly across Switzerland, as well as in the UK, France and Spain. They attended the IMS Prussia Cove masterclasses in 2025 with Professor Claudio Martínez Mehner. In 2025, they joined Le Dimore Del Quartetto network and gained a place on Musethica International, an organisation dedicated to making a social impact through classical music. They are currently studying for a Chamber Music Masters at the Musik-Akademie Basel, under the guidance of Anna Gebert and Anton Kernjak.

Violinist Leo Appel is the winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Julius Isserlis prize and the Countess of Munster Musical Trust’s Peter Cropper award. He plays as a New Ensemblist with baroque group Arcangelo and has collaborated with artists such as Vilde Frang and Nicolas Altstaedt. He is the founder and artistic director of an ensemble specialising in Judeo-Spanish and Arabic music. Cellist Katarina Leskovar has appeared at renowned venues like the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Musikverein Vienna and the Semperoper Dresden. Holding a keen interest in the discovery of music by living composers, she has given world premieres of many new works by composers such as Beat Furrer, Thomas Kessler, Judit Varga, Uroš Rojko. Violinist Hana Mizuta-Spencer has performed as a soloist with orchestras including the Piccadilly Sinfonietta and North London Symphony Orchestra. Hana has been invited to perform with Ensemble Modern and the Esbjerg Ensemble, and regularly attends festivals including IMS Prussia Cove, Frinton Festival and Mendelssohn on Mull. She is a member of the contemporary music collective, Mad Song. Violist Alinka Rowe is regularly invited as guest principal viola with Aurora Orchestra and Kammerorchester I TEMPI. She has collaborated with artists such as the Brodsky and Doric Quartets, Sheku Kanneh-Mason and Steven Isserlis. Alinka performed on the IMS Prussia Cove Tour 2021 at Champs Hill and Wigmore Hall, and has recorded for Decca Classics with the Cassadó Ensemble.

The Tunnell Trust for Young Musicians was originally established in 1988 by family members, colleagues and friends of the late John Tunnell OBE, founder leader of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and his wife Wendy.  Auditions are held annually in London to select talented ensembles of young musicians and award them a tour of Scottish Music Clubs with the aim of assisting them to cross the bridge from student to professional.  In the current season five ensembles will be performing a total of twenty-one concerts in every corner of Scotland.

For advance tickets for this Talos Quartet concert please contact jamesdmunro@btinternet.com  Thank You.