Wolfram Van Mechelen - Violin

Ludovic Bataillie - Violin

Rhea Vanhellemont - Viola

Pieter-Jan De Smet - Cello

Instruments

Wolfram plays on a violin crafted by Émile Laurent (1854-1914), in collaboration with his son Albert Laurent, and loaned by the Strings For Talent fund and the King Baudouin Foundation, in memory of Leon and George Meersman.

Ludovic plays on a violin crafted by André-Augustin Chevry in 1830.

Rhea plays on a viola crafted by Noémie Viaud in 2023, lent by the Strings For Talent fund and the King Baudouin Foundation.

Pieter-Jan plays on the ‘Papillon’ cello crafted by Stijn van Aerschot in 2022.

“Their sound is at the same time precise, incisive, sometimes, but always warm and velvety. There is a real beautiful energy of life there, just like the kindness of this quartet. And if the energy it gives off is immense, their sound is never aggressive.” MUSIQ3 - Belgium

The Desguin Quartet was founded in 2017 at the Antwerp Conservatory and quickly became known for their versatility and interdisciplinary approach. They were selected as ‘Artist in Residence’ of SWUK Vlaanderen in 2018 and shortly afterwards as a member of Orpheus Institute and the Pro Quartet Academy in Paris, where they are frequently coached by members of the Alban Berg, Danel, Doric, Ébène and Zemlinsky Quartet, among others. In 2020 they became laureate and audience winner of the Supernova Classics competition and were invited to be part of the Italian 'Le Dimore Del Quartetto' network shortly afterwards.

The Desguin Quartet is a welcome guest at various prestigious events. They performed at Klarafestival, Festival Odegand, Festival van Vlaanderen, Leuven Jazz, Arte Amanti Chamber Music Festival, Musik Collagen Darmstadt, Eupen Musikmarathon, Jazz Middelheim and many others.

They regularly share the stage with renowned artists such as baritone Werner Van Mechelen, cellist Benjamin Glorieux, the Czech Zemlinsky Quartet, pianist Florestan Bataillie, saxophonist Kurt Bertels and actors Stefaan Degand, Ivan Pecnik and Vic De Wachter. They joined the world-renowned Fred Hersch, an American Jazz legend who has been nominated 15 times for a Grammy Award, on tour.

In 2021 they released their debut album with Belgian works by Peter Benoit, Joseph Ryelandt and Mathias Coppens. They could also be heard on a CD entitled 'Mélodies de Verlaine' with Florestan Bataillie and Werner Van Mechelen. Both were picked up by Radio Klara and received with high praise.

Their latest CD, entitled 'Fingerprints#4', was released in March 2022 and was commissioned by Radio Klara. This CD features 15 brand new Flemish works for string quartet. Their strong commitment to the Belgian repertoire resulted in an invitation as a festival artist of the Belgian Music Days in Eupen 2022 and was awarded with the prestigious ‘Fuga Trofee’ by the Union of Belgian Composers.

In 2023 the Desguin Kwartet celebrates its 5th birthday and marks a new chapter for the ensemble: They have been selected to join the MERITA Platform. As a selected quartet they will start touring Europe from 2024 with a brand new project. (co-funded by the European Union). Further highlights of the upcoming season include a tour to Lebanon, recording all string quartets of Flor Alpaerts, and a collaboration with Goeyvaerts String Trio & Tineke Van Ingelgem.