THE NATIONAL STRING QUARTET FOUNDATION
BACKGROUND
The National String Quartet Foundation is a legacy of the work of the Vanbrugh Quartet. Resident Quartet to RTE from 1986 to 2013 and Artists in Residence at University College, Cork from 1990 until the retirement of violinist Gregory Ellis in 2017, the Vanbrugh Quartet gave nearly two thousand concerts throughout Ireland as well as enjoying a successful international career.
The Foundation creates and sponsors projects which bring live chamber music to audiences throughout Ireland. It is committed to supporting Irish and Irish based musicians who wish to explore and perform the string quartet repertoire and to helping concert promoters present this rich and rewarding music.
In its first full year of operation, 2018, the Foundation secured Arts Council funding to present a spring season of ten concerts in Cork City and County, followed by an autumn season of twenty seven concerts for fourteen promoters nationwide. The 2019 and subsequent seasons, with a bit of a gap thanks to Covid, built on this, with currently around eighty concerts each year given by a wide variety of string quartets, all of them with Irish connections.
The Foundation gratefully acknowledges funding from the Arts Council and RTE Lyric FM as well as the ongoing support of its founding partner UCC and of Cork City and County Councils.
REGULATORY
The National String Quartet Foundation CLG is a registered charity No.20200357 and is committed to complying fully with the Charities Regulator’s Charities Governance Code
The Foundation’s most recent financial statements are publicly available HERE
WHO WE ARE
EXECUTIVE & ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Christopher Marwood
MEMBERS OF THE COMPANY
Virginia Teehan
John Horgan
Carmel Best
Ian Wilson
Simon Taylor
Pauline MacSweeney
Deborah Kelleher
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
John Horgan
David Stang
Carmel Best
Fergus Collins
COMPANY SECRETARY
Pauline MacSweeney
AUDITORS
FDC Cork
LEGAL ADVISOR
Eoin Tobin
MISSION STATEMENT
The objectives of the National String Quartet Foundation are:
To serve the public through live performances of string quartet and other chamber music.
To support Irish string players working in the field of string quartet and related chamber music performance
To promote knowledge, understanding and appreciation of string quartet and related chamber music repertoire.
To support substantial and innovative concert series at Ireland’s major concert venues
To provide access to affordable, high quality concerts to communities throughout Ireland
To introduce young people to the diversity of classical music
To support Irish composers through commissions, workshops, performances and recordings
To encourage young Irish musicians through teaching and mentoring
To support musical and cultural festivals in Ireland
To support musical and cultural ambassadors for Ireland overseas