The HANA Quartet (Gyurim Kwak, Fuga Miwatashi, Simon Rosier, and Tzu-Shao Chao) was founded in April 2019 at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich. Based in Munich, the ensemble reflects the home countries of its members: “HANA” means “flower” in Japanese and “unity” in Korean.
Since 2021, the quartet has been studying with Professor Raphaël Merlin and the Quatuor Ébène at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich. In 2024, they worked with Professor Heime Müller at the Lübeck University of Music, and from 2025, they will continue their training with Professor Günter Pichler at the Reina Sofía School of Music in Madrid and with the Quatuor Modigliani as part of the École Normale de Musique Elite Program in Paris. They receive regular guidance from Professors Eberhard Feltz and Dirk Mommertz (Fauré Quartet), and have also gained valuable experience in masterclasses with Oliver Wille, William Coleman (Kuss Quartet), Gerhard Schulz, and the Quatuor Voce.
Their most notable performances include concerts at the Heidelberger Frühling Streichquartettfest 2025, the Würzburg Mozartfest, the Groba Festival in Spain (2024), and the “Les Classiques du Prieuré” festival in France. In 2025, the quartet participated as a Senior Quartet in the McGill International String Quartet Academy (MISQA) in Canada, where they received masterclasses from the Parker Quartet, Min-Jeong Koh, and Mathieu Herzog. Additionally, they have been selected as an Ensemble in Residence at ProQuartet (Paris) for the period 2025–2027.
The HANA Quartet has achieved recognition in major international competitions, recently reaching the semifinals at both the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition in London and the Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition in 2025. At the 15th Banff International String Quartet Competition in the same year, they received the Christine and David Anderson Professional Development Award.
Their previous accolades include 2nd prize at the Geneva International Music Competition 2023, 3rd prize at the Carl Nielsen International Chamber Music Competition 2023 in Copenhagen, the “Förderpreis Jeunesses Musicales Deutschland” special award at the ARD International Competition 2022, and 3rd prize at the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy University Competition 2020 in Berlin.