Éclat Quartet

The Éclat Quartet is comprised of musicians from the United States, China and Bulgaria. Candidates for the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Rice University Shepherd School of Music, individually they have performed venues including Carnegie Hall, the Library of Congress, the Kennedy Center and at festivals in Russia, Japan, Norway and Argentina. Committed to the presentation of new works, the Éclat will perform several compositions by Houston composers during the 2011-2012 concert season.

Sonja Harasim
violin

Sonja Harasim, a native of Houston, Texas, has performed at festivals including Schleswig-Holstein, International Holland Music Sessions, Tanglewood, and Aspen. She holds degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music and Rice University, where her teachers were David Updegraff and Kenneth Goldsmith. She is currently pursuing her Doctorate of Musical Arts as a student of Cho-Liang Lin.

Xiaoxiao Qiang
violin

Xiaoxiao Qiang began musical studies at the age of four with her father, later attending the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. She received her master’s degree from Rice University, where she studied with Cho-Liang Lin. She has earned top prizes at the Ruth Burr and Corpus Christi String Competitions and performed with the Houston and St. Louis Symphonies.

Zachary Carrettin
viola

Zachary Carrettin completed Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in violin performance at Rice University, where he studied with Kenneth Goldsmith. He holds additional degrees in orchestral conducting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the National University of Music in Bucharest. He has performed as soloist with the American Bach Soloists, Musica Angelica and Camerata Pacifica.

Lachezar Kostov
cello

Bulgarian cellist Lachezar Kostov was the National Winner at the 2006 MTNA competition and gave his Carnegie Hall debut in 2009. His first commercial CD was released by NAXOS in 2011 and includes the complete music for cello and piano by Nikolai Roslavets. He holds degrees from Yale University, North Carolina School for the Arts and the National Music Academy in Bulgaria.