The Ad Libitum Quartet was founded in 1988, within the George Enesco Academy of Arts in Iasi, under the direction of Bujor Prelipcean, a professor at the university and first violin of the Voces String Quartet.

From the start it was guided and advised by the Voces, Amadeus, Fine Arts and Juilliard Quartets. In 1996, Ad Libitum won first prize at the Sondershausen Max Reger Competition in Germany, then in 1997 the first Grand Prix at …vian, the Jury International de la Presse's special prize and the Mécénat Musical of the Société Générale Prize.

Ad Libitum has appeared in most European countries, being invited to prestigious festivals, such as the Netherlands' Orlando Festival, the International Quartets' Festival at Gordes in LubÈron, Monte Carlo's Printemps des Arts and Switzerland's Musiksommer Gstaad.

Since 1999, Ad Libitum has been Resident Quartet of the 'Moldova' Philharmonia in Iasi.

One of Naxos' newer signings, Ad Libitum has already attracted strong critical accolades for its releases of string quartets by Ravel and Faure, "an intense and fine reading" according to Repertoire and of Enescu, termed "an automatic recommendation" by the International Record Review.

July 2001

Discography