Christian Wirth, soprano saxophone
Sylvain Malézieux, alto saxophone
Fabrizio Mancuso, tenor saxophone
Gilles Tressos, baritone saxophone

As they are fond of seldom visited musical territories, the musicians of the Habanera Quartet have made their way according to the artists they have met since 1993. Unprejudiced, they sail on different stages, from contemporary creations to unusual repertoires and transcriptions, from world music to improvised music.

After studying in the Paris Conservatoire (CNSMD) where the Habanera Quartet was awarded a first chamber music prize, it has made up a probably unique record with eight first international chamber music prizes (Bordeaux, Sanguinetto, Düsseldorf, Osaka).

The Habanera Quartet has recorded for Alpha productions since the latter’s creation. From Mysterious morning, an overview of contemporary works (by Ligeti, Xenakis, Donatoni) to their record devoted to Glazounov, Grieg and Dvorak, not to mention their meeting with legendary jazz clarinetist Louis Sclavis for their common CD “L’engrenage”, the specialized music press praises their eclectism, giving them numerous awards (Golden Diapason, recommended by Classica and Répertoire).

Classical musicians without tail coats, they wish to desacralize classical concerts, coming up with Bach, Steve Reich, Dvorak and Ligeti in the same night. Louis Sclavis, Michel Portal or David Krakauer have not been mistaken as they blend with the strong framework of the quartet when they improvise.

As distant followers of Adolphe Sax, the Habanera Quartet plays Selmer saxophones and mouthpieces, then contributing to their improvement.

The concert is supported by French Institute (Institut français) at the Embassy of France in Russia.