Aeolus Quartet Signs with the Cliburn Agency for Worldwide General Management

The Cliburn Agency announces the signing of the Aeolus Quartet to its distinguished roster of artists, effective immediately. Launched in 2024, the Cliburn Agency offers comprehensive general management, concert booking, project management, and publicity and branding services to a select group of rising and established instrumentalists—piano and beyond—whose high artistic caliber is matched by a vision for moving the field of classical music forward.

Aeolus Quartet and the Cliburn Agency share a belief in music that connects, challenges, and inspires. At the heart of the Aeolus Quartet's work is a desire to place beloved masterworks in conversation with new and under-the-radar voices. With vibrant performances and meaningful community engagement, the quartet creates experiences that invite audiences to listen deeply, engage, and discover something new. Strong advocates for new music, they have worked closely with composers John Corigliano, Joan Tower, Steven Mackey, Jonathan Bailey Holland, Andrea Casarrubios, Keeril Makan, Missy Mazzoli, Timothy Mauthe, and Alexandra T Bryant, among others. This pioneering spirit carries through to their commitment to collaboration, having appeared at McCarter Theater and Princeton with composer/guitarist Steve Mackey, and a partnership with Mark Morris Dance Group that resulted in performances hailed as “vibrant” by The Wall Street Journal.  They join the Cliburn Agency to further their vision and reach new audiences with their passion and curiosity.

Aeolus Quartet says, "We are overjoyed to join the Cliburn Agency family! As an ensemble, our core values are connection, excellence, creativity, and energy. From our very first conversations with the Cliburn team, it was clear that these values are also the foundation and lifeblood of their work. In any setting, it is both fortuitous and invigorating to meet others who share your passion and the why behind the work you do. To have the opportunity to expand that synergy and rapport into an ongoing collaborative partnership is truly a dream come true. We are grateful for the opportunity to share inspiration and dream big with such a knowledgeable, passionate, and committed team, whose vision for the future of our industry is in such clear alignment with our own. "

Cliburn President and CEO Jacques Marquis says, “The Aeolus Quartet's open-hearted approach and commitment to deeply engaging with audiences clearly align with the Cliburn Agency's vision of advancing classical music.  Their rich sound world, precise ensemble playing, and energetic stage presence combined with their passion for collaboration and discovery set them apart. We look forward to a creative and fruitful partnership and are grateful to be part of this next phase of their evolution as an ensemble.”

In addition to the Aeolus Quartet, the Cliburn Agency roster comprises Anderson & Roe Piano Duo; Greg Anderson, piano; Peter Dugan, piano; Fei-Fei Dong, piano; Bridget Kibbey, harp; Aubree Oliverson, violin; Joshua Roman, cello; and Clayton Stephenson, piano. From intriguing programming and projects to alternative concerts and community engagement, these touring musicians are dedicated to connection and creativity—and they are partnering with the Cliburn to enhance and magnify their careers, efforts, and impact.

The Cliburn Agency LLC is an independently operated affiliate of the Van Cliburn Foundation, Inc.

ABOUT AEOLUS QUARTET

Acclaimed for “high-octane” performances (The Strad) and a “rich and warm tone combined with precise ensemble playing” (Cleveland Plain Dealer), the Aeolus Quartet is committed to presenting time-seasoned masterworks in dialogue with new and lesser-known works, with equal dedication and fervor.

Their open-hearted approach and expansive curiosity is reflected in recent seasons, with performances at the McCarter Theater and Princeton in collaboration with composer/guitarist Steve Mackey—including the U.S. premiere of The Ancestors for string quartet and electric guitar, a partnership with Mark Morris Dance Group that has resulted in performances hailed as “vibrant” (Wall Street Journal), and premieres of Joan Tower’s revised Wild Summer as well as the string quartet version of Andrea Casarrubios’ Overture and Chorale. Guided by a desire to connect and engage deeply with audiences, they have participated in multiple Perlman Music Program residencies, as well as teaching residencies at Interlochen and Stanford, and regularly engage with students and the community while on tour. The Quartet has also performed for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Library of Congress, Chamber Music Detroit, Strathmore, Shanghai Oriental Arts Center, and at venues across the globe.

The Aeolus Quartet’s 2026–2027 season is highlighted by co-commissions with Tippet Rise Art Center, San Antonio Chamber Music Society, and Chamber Music Columbus for a new work by composer/cellist Karen Ouzounian, and with the Ravinia Festival for a new work by Errollyn Wallen; appearances at Chamber Music Boise, Reading Friends of Chamber Music; and a residency at Marlboro Music Festival.

Continually inspired by the art of collaboration, the Aeolus Quartet has performed alongside many of today’s leading artists including Renee Fleming, Ida Kavafian, Joel Krosnick, Michael Tree, Aristo Sham, Michelle Cann, and Paul Neubauer. Strong advocates for new music, the Aeolus Quartet has premiered works by Jonathan Bailey Holland and worked closely with composers John Corigliano, Keeril Makan, Andrea Casarrubios, Missy Mazzoli, Yevgeniy Sharlat, Timothy Mauthe, and Alexandra T Bryant, among others.

They have released several critically acclaimed albums of classical and contemporary works through the Naxos and Azica labels. The Quartet’s Many-Sided Music initiative has produced two albums in an ongoing effort to promote works by American composers, and their performance in Ricky Ian Gordon’s opera Ellen West for the PROTOTYPE Festival, hailed for eliciting “dusky lyricism” (The New York Times), was released on Bright Shiny Things in 2023. They also appeared onscreen in the Netflix miniseries The Defenders in 2017.

Formed in 2008 at the Cleveland Institute of Music, the Quartet is named after the Greek god Aeolus, who governed the four winds: they are inspired by the idea of a single spirit uniting four individual forces as they pursue their craft. The Aeolus Quartet has been recognized with top prizes at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, Coleman International Chamber Ensemble Competition, Plowman Chamber Music Competition, and the Chamber Music Yellow Springs Competition. Dedicated to sharing the joy of chamber music with new audiences, they have been awarded with a Chamber Music America Residency Partnership Grant, 2016 Guarneri Quartet Residency, and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Association’s Educator Award and John Lad prize. In addition to working as teaching faculty at Interlochen Center for the Arts, they have collaborated with such institutions as the Smithsonian, Juilliard School, MIT, Boston Conservatory at Berklee, University of Texas at Austin, George Washington University, University of Virginia, and Portland State University.

The Aeolus Quartet is grateful for the mentorship of Peter Salaff, Donald Weilerstein, Itzhak Perlman, and Mark Steinberg. They have studied extensively with the Juilliard, Guarneri, St. Lawrence, Cavani, and Miró Quartets, and held the position of graduate resident string quartet at Juilliard. Members of the Quartet hold degrees from The Juilliard School, New England Conservatory, Cleveland Institute of Music, University of Maryland, and University of Texas at Austin.

Thanks to the generosity of the Five Partners Foundation, the Aeolus Quartet plays on a set of four instruments crafted by Brooklyn luthier Samuel Zygmuntowicz.