The Australian String Quartet (ASQ), the country’s pre-eminent organisation dedicated to string
quartet music, will launch its 40th anniversary year’s national touring in May with a rapturous and
engaging program showcasing the incredible capacity of the string quartet to reflect our humanity
through the music of Beethoven, Perica, Janáček and Golijov.
Commencing in Mt Barker, South Australia on Wednesday 7 May 2025, and touring to Perth,
Canberra, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne, the musical program features Beethoven’s
explosive Serioso quartet and a National Premiere by leading Australian jazz composer Vanessa
Perica, No Feeling is Final – the composer’s first work for string quartet.
Perica’s work is paired alongside Janáček’s passionate Intimate Letters and Golijov’s tender
Tenebrae, reflecting the wonder, complexity and fragility of human existence. No Feeling is Final
will be performed nationally for the first time outside of its World Premiere at the 2025 Dunkeld
Festival of Music. The work was commissioned through the ASQ’s Richard Divall Australian Music
Fund, a landmark initiative enabling the organisation to realise its commitment to commissioning
and supporting the lifecycle of new Australian music.
No Feeling is Final is a deeply personal four-movement quartet that draws on the chapters of the
composer’s own life, complete with its joys, twists, and turns.
“Writing this piece for such an extraordinary ensemble of musicians gave me the glorious
opportunity to stretch my creative boundaries. Although it came at a time of huge uncertainty, this
period gave me so much to write about. This work is emotionally charged. The first three
movements explore moments of heavy darkness intertwined with beauty, hope and joy. The fourth
movement erupts in an exciting finale, showcasing the virtuosic talents of the ASQ”, Perica said.
According to Perica, the Rapture tour marks a major personal and professional opportunity.
“Being commissioned by these phenomenal musicians has been a great honour and a significant
milestone in my career. I cannot wait for them to bring this labour of love to life, and to share it with
audiences across the country.”
For ASQ violinist Dale Barltrop, the program celebrates the human journey that can only be
expressed through the string quartet medium by some of the most personal and moving pieces
ever composed.
“This program is such a powerful way to launch the ASQ’s national touring activity for 2025. These
works brilliantly illustrate life in all its complexity and beauty”.
“It’s a joy to bring Vanessa Perica’s first piece composed for string quartet to stages around
Australia. Vanessa is a true star of contemporary Australian music and it’s a thrill to bring such a
personal and profound work to life.”
FURTHER INFORMATION
For more information on Vanessa Perica please visit: https://www.vanessaperica.com
Program
BEETHOVEN String Quartet No.11 in F minor, Op.95, Serioso
VANESSA PERICA String Quartet No.1, No Feeling is Final (World Premiere)*
JANÁČEK String Quartet No.2, Intimate Letters
GOLIJOV Tenebrae for String Quartet
*Commissioned by ASQ’s Richard Divall Australian Music Fund
Rapture Tour Dates
Mt Barker Wed 7 May, 10.30am
Perth Thu 8 May, 7pm
Canberra Sun 11 May, 2pm
Sydney, Mon 12 May, 7pm
Adelaide Fri 16 May, 7pm
Brisbane, Mon 19 May, 7pm
Melbourne, Thu 22 May, 7pm
BIOGRAPHY – AUSTRALIAN STRING QUARTET
The Australian String Quartet (ASQ) is Australia’s pre-eminent organisation dedicated to string
quartet music and Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Adelaide’s Elder Conservatorium of
Music.
Defined by excellence in performance and the joy of musical expression, our DNA comprises three
inseparable parts. At the centre is our Quartet—four full-time musicians, each a creative force in
crafting the world’s most dynamic and intimate music. Surrounding the Quartet is an innovative
production company that presents, tours, records, and promotes exceptional artistry. Sustaining
this, is a vital community of partners including our national Board, visionary Patron—Maria Myers
AC, Major Partner—The University of Adelaide, Instrument Partner—UKARIA and Government
Supporters.
Together, we celebrate music from the past to the present, from near and afar, and strive to reflect
contemporary Australia through our performances, collaborations, advocacy, learning programs,
and development of new work. Our landmark ASQ Australian Music Fund, supports our ground-
breaking Australian Anthology project that proudly champions the work of Australian artists.
In our 40th year, we are energised by our purpose to create chemistry and amplify intimacy through
experiences that engage people across regional and metropolitan Australia and around the world.
Dale Barltrop plays a 1784 Guadagnini Violin, Turin
Francesca Hiew plays a 1748-49 Guadagnini Violin, Piacenza
Chris Cartlidge plays a 1783 Guadagnini Viola, Turin
Michael Dahlenburg plays a c.1743 Guadagnini Violoncello, Piacenza, ‘Ngeringa’
BIOGRAPHY – VANESSA PERICA
Vanessa Perica is a composer and conductor based in Melbourne, Australia.
Upon completion of her Bachelor degree in 2003 at the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts,
she was awarded the prestigious Bob Wyllie Scholarship for ‘Most Outstanding Graduating Jazz
Student.’ Other recipients of this honour include Linda May Han Oh, Mat Jodrell, Ben Vanderwal and
Troy Roberts.
In 2019, Vanessa was a recipient of an Australia Council grant to record her debut album with an all-
star lineup including Andrea Keller, Julien Wilson, Sam Anning, Mat Jodrell, Ben Vanderwal, Jordan
Murray, Carl Mackey, Paul Williamson and Jamie Oehlers. Released in February 2020, the album
titled ‘Love is a Temporary Madness’ has been critically acclaimed, reaching number 1 on the AIR
Independent charts, and number 3 on the ARIA Jazz & Blues charts.
The album was a nominee in the Australian Music Prize and AIR Awards, and won ‘Best Jazz Album’
at the 2020 Music Victoria Awards.
In February 2021, Vanessa was commissioned by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra to write the
‘Love is a Temporary Madness’ Symphonic Suite. This was premiered by the MSO and Vanessa
Perica Orchestra, and conducted by Benjamin Northey at the iconic Sidney Myer Music Bowl.
In November of the same year, the Vanessa Perica Orchestra joined forces once again with the
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra for the Melbourne International Jazz Festival’s Opening Night Gala
at Hamer Hall. Featuring vocalists Kate Ceberano, Michelle Nicolle, Thando, Eddie Perfect and
more, they performed compositions and arrangements by Vanessa and Chris Crenshaw (Jazz at
Lincoln Center in New York).
Vanessa was a winner in the 2021 APRA Art Music Awards and Australian Jazz Bell Awards, and was
a finalist in the 2022 Australian Women in Music Awards. Her composition was also a 2022 APRA Art
Music Awards finalist for ‘Jazz Performance of the Year’ for her orchestra’s collaboration with the
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
The Society of Composers Inc. also named Vanessa the winner of the 2022 and 2023 Jazz
Composition Award with her compositions ‘Woody’s Lament’ and ‘The Eye is the First Circle.’
In 2023, the Vanessa Perica Orchestra released their second studio album, ‘The Eye is the First
Circle’ to critical acclaim. This was launched as part of the Melbourne International Jazz Festival at
the Melbourne Recital Centre. Her composition ‘Hill of Grace’ from this album was a finalist in the
APRA Art Music Awards for ‘Work of the Year’ in the same year.
Most recently she was named the Winner of the 2024 APRA Professional Development Award for
Jazz/Improvised music, and a nominee in the 2024 ARIA Awards for Best Jazz Album.
The International Society of Jazz Composers and Arrangers (ISJAC) named Vanessa winner of the
2025 Fundamental Freedoms Commission Prize. This new work will be premiered at an ISJAC
Honors Event in New York City later this year.
She is the conductor for the Australia/New Zealand Ministry of Sound Classical tour.
