Concerti

“A triumph, this soulful string quartet album.”

Ecki Ramón Weber: “Neue Bespiegelungen” in Concerti, 4 September 2026

NDR Album der Woche

“The immediacy of the experience is not for the faint-hearted. The quartet has so thoroughly internalised this musical language over the years that listening to them can quite literally take your breath away. The interpretation feels intensely considered yet utterly impulsive, as though emerging spontaneously in the moment. There is no contradiction here; rather, this tension lies at the heart of what makes the Signum Quartet distinctive.”

Raliza Nikolov: “Wenn die Erde bebt: Das Signum Quartett und Janáčeks Welt der Gefühle” in NDR Album der Woche, 13 September 2026

BBC Music Magazine

“The play­ers also have a strong sense of the works’ near ­op­er­atic drama, refus­ing to shy away from the edgier, almost ugly sound­ing moments key to any sat­is­fy­ing inter­pret­a­tion. […] an intriguing issue.”

Jan Smaczny: “The Earth Trembled” in BBC Music Magazine, 10 September 2026

Gramophone

“the Signum’s slightly more measured but superbly played version of this unalloyed masterpiece [Rainier] is unreservedly welcome. So is the whole album, though, with such tremendous performances and pitch-perfect sound. Recommended.”

Guy Rickards: “A Dark Flaring: Works for String Quartet from South Africa” in Gramophone, August 2025

The Strad

“Thought-provoking programming, magnificent playing.  […] The players’ coordination is breathtaking both in terms of ensemble and intonation, and their observation of dynamics and articulation guarantees that the work’s emotional impact is fully realised.”

David Threasher: “The Strad Recommends: Signum Quartet Lebensmuth” in The Strad, 26 June 2023

concerti

“Intoxicating and deeply moving. Sublime ensemble playing.”

Eckhard Weber: “Review: Lebensmuth” in concerti, 7 June 2023

Strings Magazine

“an affecting new way of playing and listening to Schubert […] Prepare for a deeply moving experience”

Laurence Vittes: “Review: Signum Quartett Suggests New Ways of Playing Schubert on ‘Ins stille Land’” in Strings Magazine, 16 March 2021

BBC Music Magazine

“dissonant with dark, tonal-atonal underpinnings, and replete with pauses and explosions that ricochet outwards in molten trails before re-gathering. All are delivered with exemplary drive and luminosity: the Signum Quartett respond vividly to the changing textures of Tüür’s imagined Lost Prayers.”

Steph Power: “Erkki-Sven Tüür: Lost Prayers” in Classical Music, 21 January 2021

The Strad

“The Signum’s ‘Death and the Maiden’ is up there with the best from a crowded field”

Carlos Maria Solare: “Signum Quartet: Ins stille Land” in The Strad, 2 January 2021

Gramophone

“passionate, often brilliant, but also clear and lean […] a D810 finale so swift that it feels genuinely dangerous […] an album that repays careful and repeated listening”

Richard Bratby: “SCHUBERT Ins stille Land” in Gramophone, 01/2021

Rondo Magazin

“That this develops into a dialogue between Schubert’s dual composer souls of lied and chamber music to which one does not merely listen, but by which one is spellbound and enthralled, is thanks to the highly concentrated, creative, versatile and emotional playing of the four musicians.”

Guido Fischer: “SCHUBERT Ins stille Land” in Rondo Magazin, 28.11.2020

Diapason

“The interpretation presented by the Signum Quartet has nothing massive about it. Starting from its very first beat, one can hear the quartet‘s preference for a light aesthetic, which reminds us of their last Schubert recording which we enjoyed so much.”

Jean-Michel Molkhou: “Beethoven op 130 & 133” in Diapason, 04/20

The Times

Schubert “Death and the Maiden”

“a performance as boldly imagined as a symphony, with startling rhythmic daring in the scherzo and timbres that ranged from ashen to silver in the variations. Fury, tenderness, terror, sardonic humour and resignation were here in a journey that left the listener bruised and breathless.

Anna Picard: “Review: Mozart’s Requiem at Kings Place, N1” in The Times, 5. December 2018

Diapason

“The intimacy of the famous Andante [of D 804], the exceedingly gentle palpitations in the Menuetto as well as the authentic freshness of the Finale are emblematic of one of the most sensitive interpretations ever recorded.”

Jean-Michel Molkhou: “SCHUBERT Aus der Ferne” in Diapason, 09/18

FONO FORUM

“an unrelentingly gripping voyage through Schubert’s mysterious world”

Carlos Maria Solare: “Aus der Ferne. Schubert.” in FONO FORUM, 08/18

The Strad

“their readings’ greatest beauty is the intimate emotional trinity they intertwine of dignity, fragility and pain.”

Charlotte Gardner: “Aus der Ferne – Schubert quartets and lieder arrangements” in The Strad, June 2018

Gramophone

“The quartet play transparently and eloquently, without a hint of sentimentality, in performances that deal unflinchingly with the music’s latent violence. The slow movement of the A minor Quartet, in particular, veers terrifyingly into the darkness […] Definitely not Schubert as easy-listening, then, but a fascinating, thought-provoking disc.”

Richard Bratby: “SCHUBERT Aus der Ferne” in Gramophone, 06/2018

The Strad

“The Signum Quartet’s performance was a single multifaceted paragraph of tremendous cumulative power”

Tim Homfray: “Postcard from: the String Quartet Biennale Amsterdam” in The Strad, 8. May 2018

neue musikzeitung

“That Widmann is not only one of the most well-versed polystylists but also a great friend of the musical grotesque is demonstrated by his “Jagdquartett”, played here by the Signum Quartet gone wild, and setting a new record for speed and screams..”

Dirk Wieschollek: „Immanenz und Transzendenz“ in nmz, 04/2018

Rondo Magazin

“In the 3rd String Quartet by Widmann, the four string players of the Signum Quartet race over hill and dale. In this ‘Jagdquartett’ (Mozart sends his regards!) they master the most varied and extreme technical situations with unstoppable drive and unmistakable exuberance.”

Guido Fischer: „Jörg Widmann Viola-Konzert, 24 Duos (Auswahl), Jagdquartett“ in Rondo Magazin, 10. March 2018 (own translation)

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

“Chamber music at its finest.”

Guido Holze: “Es klappert die Mühle” in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 29. November 2017

violinist.com

String Quartet Biennale Amsterdam

“Balm to the soul was provided by the Signum Quartet’s ravishing, organic Beethoven opus 132. Playing as if they shared one and the same breath, the group showed how four can actually become one while casting a spell.”

Heather Kurzbauer: “String Quartet Biennale Amsterdam (SQBA) opens with charisma and color” in violinist.com, 4. February 2018

elbowmusic.org

String Quartet Biennale Amsterdam

“So on one night we had the Signum Quartet finding the otherworldly, slow-motion beauty of Beethoven’s op.132 Heiliger Dankgesang, and the next afternoon, coming back to this sound world in a performance of Jörg Widmann’s complete string quartets. […] As well as the sheer technical dexterity and accuracy required, the members of the Signum Quartet proved to be superb actors.”

Ariane Todes: “Can string quartets save the world?” in elbowmusic.org, 9. Februar 2018

The Telegraph

November’s best classical concerts

“brilliantly performed”, “with perfect precision” 5*

Ivan Hewett: “November’s best classical concerts” in The Telegraph, 13. November 2016

The Guardian

Signum Quartet/BCMG review

“The [12th String Quartet by Kevin Volans] must be frighteningly difficult to coordinate and play, but the Signum performance seemed astonishingly assured.”

Andrew Clements: “Signum Quartet/BCMG review – a double bill of Kevin Volans world premieres” in The Guardian, 13 November 2016

The Strad

alla czeca

“The Signum’s playing is both clean in its clarity of ensemble and interpretatively full of freshness and life, and its ebullience of spirit in the exhilarating finale is infectious.”

Matthew Rye: “alla czeca” in The Strad, 2. January 2016

Süddeutsche Zeitung

alla czeca

“The gesture-rich Five Pieces by Erwin Schulhoff, one of the most interesting Innovators of the Twenties and Thirties who fell victim to the Nazis in 1942, come across brilliantly.”

Harald Eggebrecht: “Klassikkolumne”. In Süddeutsche Zeitung, 22. September 2015. Own translation.

concerti

alla czeca: “Existential utterance”

“Electrifying and profound […] The Signum Quartet tests the extremes, venturesome and headstrong. […] The string quartet as existential utterance – nothing banal here.”

Eckhard Weber: “Existenzielle Aussprache” in concerti, October 2015. Own translation 

Aachener Zeitung

alla czeca

The Signums make music in the best late romantic tradition, without even a suggestion of seeming old-fashioned. On the contrary: Dvořák’s music bursts with liveliness. One hasn’t heard something like this in a long time.”

ark: “Album Check 1: Alla Czeca”. In Aachener Zeitung, 9. October 2015. Own translation.

Spiegel Online

soundescapes: “In the miniature wonderland of strings”

“An exhilarating cocktail.”
“a refined fire, glowing, perfectly formed.”
“How wonderful it is when interpreters bring these ideas to life with such verve and intuition. […] An enthusiasm for playing which will perk up even hardened chamber music-grouches.”

 Werner Theurich: “Kammermusik: Im Miniatur-Wunderland der Streicher”. In Spiegel Online, 19. April 2015. Own translation.

deutschlandfunk.de

soundescapes: “Music to touch”

“Music to touch, music which does not merely ring in the ears but which is positively palpable. This is the new CD by the Signum Quartet. At times it feels like gossamer parchment paper, at times like coarse, dried wood, at times like brushed, cold steel.”

Maja Ellmenreich: “Die neue Platte: Musik zum Anfassen”. In deutschlandfunk.de, 3. Mai 2015. Own translation.

pizzicato.lu

soundescapes: “Fascinating nuances”

“Introspection and refined emotional nuances also define this reading of the Ravel quartet, in which we, as in the preceding works, marvel at the ensemble’s balance of sound, which transforms the music into a kind of sensual dream and portrays the delicacy of Ravel’s music completely.”

Remy Franck: “Faszinierende Nuancierungskunst”. In pizzicato.lu, 4. Mai 2015. Own translation.

Ostthüringer Zeitung

soundescapes: “Musical escapes”

“[…] the Signum Quartet, who under the allusion-rich title “soundescapes” has just released an extraordinary recording of sensual works which play with the flow of sound and colour. These are musical points of escape in many respects, as this recording is potentially addictive.”

 
Tatjana Mehner: “Musikalische Fluchtpunkte” In: Ostthüringer Zeitung, 7. April 2015. Own translation.

tagblatt.ch

soundescapes: “Fresh and exciting”

“The new CD of the Signum Quartet from Germany belongs in the premium class. This recording of Debussy’s String Quartet is characterized from the very first bar by an elastic and flowing style and an enormously rich tonal palette. The four players approach this impressionistic gem with a joyful sense of discovery – fresh and full of vigour.”

 
“Taufrisch und aufgregend” In: tagblatt.ch, 27.March 2015. Own translation.

classicalsource.com

Signum Quartet at Wigmore Hall

“The Signum members gave a full-throttled performance [of Beethoven’s Große Fuge op. 133], rising to its many challenges – not the least of which being stamina – with great aplomb. Potentially an impenetrable mess of contrapuntal complexity, here the fugal lines were brought out with dextrous virtuosity.”

 
Arnold Jarvist: “Signum Quartet at Wigmore Hall – Beethoven B flat/Opus 130 String Quartet with Grosse Fuge” In: classicalsource.com, 2 March 2015

seenandheard-international.com

Uplifting Lunchtime Beethoven from the Signum String Quartet

“Thoughtful intellectual analysis, complex musicianship, outstanding technical command, meticulous ensemble and a delightful level of imagination persuasively underpinned their Beethoven. […] the most uplifting lunchtime I have experienced for some time.”
 
Leon Bosch: “Uplifting Lunchtime Beethoven from the Signum String Quartet” In: seenandheard-international.com, 10 March 2015

Süddeutsche Zeitung

“Wild hunt”
Jörg Widmann and friends at the Prinzregententheater

“Because it, designated Jagdquartett, re-enacts a conspiracy of the three upper strings against the cello as a societal metaphor, it falls more within the realm of concept art. The acoustic signals of the violent string cascades chased the wild shouting of the players until the bow hairs of the instruments of the splendid Signum ensemble were flying and the exhausted and fatally wounded cellist was hunted down.”
 
Klaus P. Richter: “Wilde Jagd” In: Süddeutsche Zeitung, 10 December 2014

Süddeutsche Zeitung

No. 3

“The high point is nevertheless the Bartók quartet, whose gigantic contrasts are plumbed by the Signum Quartet with exquisitely expressive playing and with awe-inspiring tonal acuity in the dissonances.”
 
KLK: “CD Tipp” In: Süddeutsche Zeitung, 18 June 2014, own translation

Badische Zeitung

An explosion of emphasis

“To hear Haydn played like this is unusual yet refreshing and invigorating as the four are technically capable of anything, to which also belongs their ability to return immediately to intimate and tranquil piani.”

Nikolaus Cybinski: “Eine Explosion der Emphase” In: Badische Zeitung, 17 February 2014, own translation

Neue Zeitschrift für Musik

No. 3

“Yet this CD is worth it solely for the interpretation of Schnittke’s Third Quartet: In a breathlessly gripping account, the Signum Quartet retraces the composer’s grappling search for a valid standpoint on the stockpile of history, through which he has thoroughly sifted.”

Doris Kösterke: “No. 3” In: Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, 01/ 2014, own translation

The Independent

BBC Proms 2013: “Signum and Hadland excel in Brahms“

“Owing more to the influence of Bartok than to that of her tutor Ralph Vaughan Williams, its vibrant eloquence [Elisabeth Maconchy’s String Quartet No.3] was beautifully rendered by the Signum Quartet, who were then joined by Christian Ihle Hadland for a stunning account of Brahms’s Piano Quintet in F minor.”

Michael Church: Classical review: Elder and the Halle deliver a majestic Parsifal, the Signum and Hadland excel in Brahms. In: independent.co.uk. 26. August 2013.

Gramophone

No. 3

“…the Signum Quartet respond [to Berg op. 3] with an almost fulsome warmth of tone – perhaps assuming some hidden romantic programme, a Bergian Verklärte Nacht?“

Arnold Whittall: Review. In: Gramophone, September 2013.

Fonoforum

No. 3: “Prowling and scraping”

“It is no longer enough to play “merely” outstandingly to assert oneself against the tough competition. An individual profile is demanded. The German Signum Quartet demonstrates this with their bold choice of programmes, as is the case with their most recent CD.”

Marcus Stäbler: “Pirschen und Schaben” In: Fonoforum, August 2013. Own translation

Ensemble

No. 3: “3 times 3”
“The expressive range which the Signum Quartet audibly savours is astonishingly broad. […] With precision, lightning quick responses and an unwavering sense of style, the four musicians make this music to a gripping listening experience and prove how exciting the chamber music of the first half of the 20th century can be.”

Anna Renczikowski: “3 mal 3” . In: Ensemble, August/ September 2013. Own translation

Pizzicato Magazin

No. 3: “Three times four = brilliant”
“This is a CD which elicits pure enthusiasm. Only a pity that it is already finished after 51 minutes. The Signum Quartet plays the three works of the 20th century with such conviction that one can only be amazed. When has one heard the Berg Quartet played so analytically as well as with such deep musicianship? When does a recording allow us to experience the music making so vividly? “
 
Alain Steffen: “Drei mal vier = genial”. In: pizzicato.lu, 03.10.2013. Own translation

br.de

Quartet Movements

“That all of this has an inner rightness, that the intrinsic, the essentially artistic prerequisites are not only met but are grounds for euphoria, all this can be heard on the wonderfully composed programme of their recent CD of quartet movements (…) What a roller coaster ride of ardent emotions (…); Colours, intensities!”

Helmut Rohm: Quartettsätze. In: br.de. 9. January 2012. Own translation

ndr.de

Quartet movements of the 19th and 20th centuries

“The Signum Quartet enlivens the music’s emotional characters with a considerable palette of expression (…) A powerful recording with an entirely individual stamp.”

Marcus Stäbler: Quartettsätze des 19. und 20. Jahrhunderts. In: ndr.de. 4. January 2012, own translation

kulturradio.de

“Quartet Movements”

“On the one hand sophisticated and technically mature, on the other hand one can sense an inquisitiveness and astonishment – one can almost hear the musicians agape again and again at the unexpected sounds they themselves are producing. Maturity and experience are paired here with a delight in risk taking.” .”

Volker Michael:”Quartet Movements”. In: kulturradio.de 6. January 2012. Own translation.

Pizzicato Magazin

“With responsibilty and joy”
Ludwig Thuille – String Quartets

“This CD [of Ludwig Thuille’s string quartets] confirms the outstanding impression made by the Signum Quartet, which must already be counted among the best ensembles of its generation and need not hide behind renowned star quartets such as the Hagens or Emersons.”

Alain Steffen: “Mit Verantwortung und Freude”. In: Pizzicato Magazine, 12/2010. Own translation.

 

If you would like to receive a comprehensive press review, please contact:

Philip Krippendorff
maren borchers • for artists
www.forartists.de
philip.krippendorff@forartists.de
+49-30-414 7817 41