The Balourdet and Terra quartets will feature in a collaborative performance during the 2026-27 St. Lawrence Legacy Series at Stanford Live
The St. Lawrence Chamber Music Seminar has announced the Balourdet and Terra quartets as joint recipients of the 2025 John Lad Prize.
The prize is named in honour of John Lad, an alum of Stanford University, where the St. Lawrence Quartet (SLSQ) was in residence since 1998. Lad was a violist and long-time participant of the SLSQ’s annual Chamber Music Seminar.
The quartets received the prize in recognition of their shared values with John Lad: dedication to chamber music, generosity of spirit, and artistic excellence.
As co-recipients of the prize, the Balourdet and Terra quartets will feature in a collaborative performance during the 2026-27 St. Lawrence Legacy Series at Stanford Live, presented at Bing Concert Hall.
The mixed ensemble programme will culminate in a performance of George Enescu’s String Octet. The prize also includes an invitation to perform at the 2026 Rockport Chamber Music Festival at the Shalin Liu Performance Center.
Both quartets have enjoyed success representing the next generation of ensembles in today’s chamber music scene. The Balourdet Quartet received an Avery Fisher Career Grant and Chamber Music America’s Cleveland Quartet Award in 2024, and will serve as Seattle Chamber Music Society’s first-ever string quartet in residence from September 2025 to May 2026.
The Terra Quartet won second prize at both the 2025 Wigmore Hall and Bordeaux International String Quartet competitions and served as fellowship quartet in residence at Yale School of Music for the 2024–25 academic year.
Previous accolades for the Terra Quartet include the grand prize and gold medal at the 2022 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, and the Christine and David Anderson Career Development Prize at the 2022 Banff International String Quartet Competition. It also won prizes at the 2023 Melbourne and Osaka International Chamber Music competitions.
The SLSQ was formed in 1989 and disbanded after 34 seasons in 2024, following a year’s hiatus after the death of founding violinist, Geoff Nuttall, in 2022. The members continue to make their lives at Stanford University, performing, teaching, directing Stanford’s chamber music programme, and producing its annual Chamber Music Seminar, in addition to pursuing other musical projects.
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Read: Postcard from France: Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition
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