Lesley Robertson
String Quartet Jury 2023
Biography
Founding member of the internationally celebrated St. Lawrence String Quartet (1989-), Lesley Robertson (viola) is proud to make her life at Stanford University where she teaches viola and along with her SL colleagues, directs and coaches chamber music. At Stanford, Lesley also spearheads the SLSQ's Emerging String Quartet Program and the annual Chamber Music Seminar.
A graduate of the Curtis Institute and the Juilliard School, Ms. Robertson also holds a degree from the University of British Columbia where she studied with her mentor, Gerald Stanick. A founding member of the SLSQ, Ms. Robertson toured regularly for more than three decades, performing 100+ concerts worldwide per season while also nurturing close ties to her home community, performing in classes, dormitories, laboratories, hospitals, and in Stanford's glorious Bing Concert Hall.
She has served on the jury of several international competitions including the Banff International String Quartet Competition, the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition and the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition She participated in the Marlboro Festival for several years and toured with Musicians from Marlboro before co-founding the SLSQ. Recent summer engagements include performances at Spoleto Festival USA, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Banff Festival, Festival of the Sound, Santa Fe Chamber Music, Rockport Chamber Music Festival, Bravo Vail, Music@Menlo, Summer Music Vancouver and more.
Robertson plays on a viola (1992) made by fellow Canadian John Newton and a bow (2016) by Francois Malo.
Source: http://www.slsq.com/lesley-robertson / Updated August 2023
Events

STRING QUARTET 2023 | FINAL ROUND
Sunday 29 October, 2:00 PM, Victoria Hall, Geneva
The three finalists will perform a string quartet of their choice.
The Final Round is followed by the prize-giving ceremony
JURY MEMBERS
Corina Belcea, Chair
William Coleman
Gabriel Le Magadure
Christian Poltéra
Lesley Robertson
Vineta Sareika
Lydia Shelley

77th CONCOURS DE GENÈVE
STRING QUARTET SEMI-FINAL - RECITAL 2
26-27 October 2023, Salle Franz Liszt, Conservatoire de Genève
Sessions at 15:30, 17:00 & 19:00
THURSDAY 26 OCTOBER
Session 1 - 15:30
- P. Dusapin: Quatuor V
- L. v. Beethoven: String Quartet n°15 in A minor, Op. 132
Session 2 - 17:00
- L. v. Beethoven: String Quartet n°4 in C minor, Op. 18/4
- R. Saunders: Fletch
- C. Debussy: String Quartet in G minor, Op. 10
Session 2 - 19:00
- L. v. Beethoven: String Quartet n°11 in F minor, Op. 95
- S. Sciarrino: Sei quartetti brevi
- D. Shostakovich: String Quartet n°8 in C minor, Op. 110
FRIDAY 28 OCTOBER
Session 4 - 15:30
Ast Quartet
- L. v. Beethoven: String Quartet n°4 in C minor, Op. 18/4
- R. Saunders: Fletch
- C. Debussy: String Quartet in G minor, Op. 10
Session 5 - 17:00
Quatuor Elmire
- L. v. Beethoven: String Quartet n°1 in F Major, Op. 18/1
- A. Webern: Langsamer Satz
- P. Dusapin: Quatuor V
Session 5 - 19:00
Novo Quartet
- C. Nielsen: String Quartet n°1 in G minor, Op. 13
- F. Donatoni: La Souris sans sourire
- L. v. Beethoven: String Quartet n°8 in E minor, Op. 59/2

STRING QUARTET SEMI-FINAL ROUND - ARTISTIC PROJECT
26-27 October, 10:00-12:00, Salle Bartholoni, Conservatoire de Genève
Innovative and daring artists, strong personalities, musicians who inspire us: these are the men and women who will shape the musical world of tomorrow. The Competition's mission is to discover them and to support them as they take the first steps in their careers.
To achieve this, we have created an ambitious programme and assembled prestigious juries, but that is not all. The Concours de Genève has distinguished itself by introducing a third stage to the semi-final round: the "personal artistic project". We ask the semi-finalists, with the help of two experienced coaches who will work with them beforehand, to design an artistic project that they would like to carry out if they are selected for the Final.
Then, on 26 and 27 October the quartets will have to defend their project in front of the jury in a public interview with the journalist Charlotte Gardner.
A unique opportunity to discover the depth and complexity of these young artists.
Free entrance, limited spaces

77th CONCOURS DE GENÈVE
STRING QUARTET SEMI-FINAL - RECITAL 1
24-25 October 2023, Salle Franz Liszt, Conservatoire de Genève
TUESDAY 24 OCTOBER
Session 1 - 15:00
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 77, n°1 in G Major, Hob.III.81
- K. Szymanowski: String Quartet n°2, Op. 56
- B. Bartók: String Quartet n°3 in C-sharp minor, Sz. 85
Session 2 - 17:00
- B. Britten: Three Divertimenti
- H. Purcell: Fantasia in D minor, Z. 739
- R. García-Tomás: […] cos. mostraste a lei i vivi ardori miei […]
- B. Bartók: String Quartet n°3 in C-sharp minor, Sz. 8z
- F. Mendelssohn: String Quartet n°2 in A minor, Op. 13
Session 3 - 19:00
- B. Bartók: String Quartet n°6 in D Major, Sz. 114
- A. Webern: Langsamersatz
- F. Mendelssohn: String Quartet n°6 in F minor, Op. 80
WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER
Session 4 - 15:00
- B. Bartók: String Quartet n°3 in C-sharp minor, Sz. 85
- L. v. Beethoven: String Quartet n°9 in C Major, Op. 59/3
- F. Mendelssohn: String Quartet n°6 in F minor, Op. 80
Session 5 - 17:00
- B. Bartók: String Quartet n°2 in A minor, Op. 17, Sz. 67
- A. Webern: Sechs Bagatellen, Op. 9
- F. Mendelssohn: String Quartet n°2 in E minor, Op. 44
Session 6 - 19:00
Novo Quartet
- B. Bartók: String Quartet n°4 in C Major, Sz. 91
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 20, n°2 in C Major, Hob.III.32, “Sun”
- J. Brahms: String Quartet n°2 in A minor, Op. 51

77th CONCOURS DE GENÈVE
STRING QUARTET - ONLINE RECITAL
SESSION 1 - MONDAY 18 SEPTEMBER, 10:00 AM GMT+2
Moser String Quartet, Switzerland
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 76, n°2 in D minor, Hob.III.76
- D. Shostakovich: Quartet n°8 in C minor, Op. 110
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 33, n°1 in B minor, Hob.III.37
- L. Janáček: Quartet n°1 “Kreutzer Sonata”
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 20, n°2 in C Major, Hob.III.32
- L. Janáček: Quartet n°1 “Kreutzer Sonata”
SESSION 2 - MONDAY 18 SEPTEMBER, 14:00 PM GMT+2
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 76, n°3 in C Major, Hob.III.77
- M. Ravel: Quartet in F Major
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 20, n°4 in D Major, Hob.III.34
- G. Ligeti: Quartet n°1, “Métamorphoses Nocturnes”
- W.A Mozart: String Quartet n°17 in B-flat Major, K.458 “The Hunt”
- D. Shostakovich: Quartet n°8 in C minor, Op. 110
SESSION 3 - TUESDAY 19 SEPTEMBER, 10:00 AM GMT+2
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 77, n°1 in G Major, Hob.III.81
- L. Janáček: Quartet n°1 “Kreutzer Sonata”
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 50, n°1 in B-flat Major, Hob.III.44
- G. Ligeti: Quartet n°1, “Métamorphoses Nocturnes”
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 76, n°5 in D Major, Hob.III.79
- H. Dutilleux: Quartet “Ainsi la nuit”
SESSION 4 - TUESDAY 19 SEPTEMBER, 2:00 PM GMT+2
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op 77, n°1 in G Major, Hob.III.81
- L. Janáček: Quartet n°2 “Intimate letters”
- W.A. Mozart: String Quartet n°14 in G Major, K. 387 “The Spring”
- L. Janáček: Quartet n°1 “Kreutzer Sonata”
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 20, n°2 in C Major, Hob.III.32
- L. Janáček: Quartet n°2 “Intimate letters”
SESSION 5 - WEDNESDAY 20 SEPTEMBER, 10:00 AM GMT+2
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 33, n°1 in B minor, Hob.III.37
- L. Janáček: Quartet n°2 “Intimate letters”
- J. Haydn: String Quartet Op. 76, n°1 in G Major, Hob.III.75
- D. Shostakovich: Quartet n°8 in C minor, Op. 110