Created in 1999 by the cellist Alain Meunier and Bernard Lummeaux, the International String Quartet Competition of Bordeaux has established itself as an unavoidable reference in the landscape of chamber music and international competitions.
Taking over from the Evian Competition launched in 1977 by Serge Zehnacker and directed from 1987 by Alain Meunier (at the request of Mstislav Rostropovitch), it has revealed a number of ensembles at the beginning of brilliant careers. The Pražák (1978), Hagen (1983), Ysaÿe (1988) quartets won the First Grand Prix in Evian Evian; the Belcea (1999), Ebene (2003) and Schumann (2013) quartets have extended the prestigious list of winners of the Bordeaux competition.
Under the joint direction of Alain Meunier and Bernard Lummeaux for twenty years until 2019, the Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition is beginning a new phase in its history: the Modigliani Quartet and Julien Kieffer are now in charge of the competition and the festival. In 2021, the event changes its name and becomes Vibre!, as an irrepressible desire to feel again the emotions that music transmits, when it is alive, when it is vibrant!
The tenth edition of the Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition took place in 2022, and was unanimously hailed as a great vintage. The Leonkoro Quartet (Germany) was crowned the overall winner by a top-class jury and a packed audience.
