Named after Villiers Street in London, the Villiers Quartet encompass the grand and iconic spirit of the British music tradition. They are Quartet-in-Residence at the Jacqueline Du Pre Music Centre at Oxford University, and have become recognised nationally for their performances of British Music.
They have been noted for "exquisite ensemble playing" (Seen and Heard International) and their absolute "commitment and virtuosity" (The Sunday Times) and hailed as "Champions of British Music" (The Observer). The Quartet has released critically acclaimed recordings of works by Elgar, Delius, Ethel Smyth, Peter Racine Fricker, William Sterndale Bennett, David Matthews, William Alwyn and Kuljit Bhamra MBE. In 2021 to celebrate the Villiers 10th anniversary they commissioned 6 new works from British composers.
In 2026, the quartet welcomed new cellist Toby White, former cellist of the Jubilee Quartet.
The Villiers Quartet
Katie Stillman (violin)
Carmen Flores (viola)
Tamaki Higashi (violin)
Toby White (cello)
The Quartet has broadcast on BBC Radio and was featured on BBC's In Tune in October 2022 performing and discussing their latest recording of the Delius and Smyth Quartets. They have also performed live on the BBC One's Andrew Marr Show, and were the featured quartet on the score for the BBC film Lady Chatterley's Lover.
In 2020 the Villiers developed digitally based projects including VQ Discovery, a unique online course designed for amateur players to study quartets in depth. They include instrumental sectionals, discussions on technique, a guest lecture, historic context, and a play-along finale. This project has proved to be very popular; previous seasons have included Beethoven Opus 131. Ravel Quartet and Schubert "Death and the Maiden."
The Villiers passion for performing and teaching has created a valuable on-line resource for students and audiences alike.
Alongside VQ Discovery, there is VQ Create, an on-line mentoring course for secondary school pupils wishing to explore composition for the String Quartet, and VQ Commissions, a platform for the development of new works for the Quartet
