Matt Denton Violin
Matthew Denton (violin) has performed for three decades as leader of the internationally acclaimed Carducci Quartet, one of the UK’s most celebrated ensembles.
As a chamber musician, he has won prizes at major international competitions including the Concert Artists Guild Competition, Kuhmo Chamber Music Competition, Charles Hennen Competition, Osaka International Chamber Music Competition and Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition. In the UK, he has received awards from organisations including the Royal Over-Seas League, Tillett Trust, Tunnell Trust, Countess of Munster Musical Trust and the Parkhouse Award.
With the Carducci Quartet, Matthew has recorded more than 25 albums for labels including Signum Records, Naxos, BMG, Somm Recordings and Nimbus Records, as well as the quartet’s own label. He has performed at leading venues worldwide including Carnegie Hall, the Library of Congress, Wigmore Hall, Concertgebouw and Tivoli Concert Hall, with the quartet presenting around 90 concerts each year.
Renowned for their complete cycles of Bartók, Beethoven and Shostakovich, the quartet received a Royal Philharmonic Society Award for their landmark ‘Shostakovich15’ project—ten complete cycles presented worldwide, culminating in an immersive single-day performance at Shakespeare’s Globe.
Matthew studied with Felix Andrievsky at the Royal College of Music, before holding Junior Fellowships in chamber music, working with members of the Amadeus Quartet, Alberni Quartet and Chilingirian Quartet. He continued his studies in Paris with ProQuartet, working with the Alban Berg Quartet, Walter Levin, Paul Katz and György Kurtág. He later became a Bulldog Scholar and Richard Carne Junior Fellow at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where he is now violin professor and quartet-in-residence.
As a soloist, he has performed concertos by Bach, Mendelssohn, Vivaldi, Delius, Beethoven, Bruch and Brahms. He is also in demand as a guest leader, working with ensembles including the Wigmore Soloists, Britten Sinfonia, Orchestra of the Swan and Ensemble 360, and is Associate Concertmaster of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra.
Matthew is a prolific recording artist and session musician, contributing to numerous film and television soundtracks including Downton Abbey, Poldark, The Theory of Everything, Everest, Murder on the Orient Express, Shazam! and Paddington. He has also appeared on albums by Ed Sheeran, Ellie Goulding and Jethro Tull.
A dedicated teacher, many of his former students now perform with leading ensembles including the Hallé, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Aurora Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the English Symphony Orchestra. He is also co-founder of the Carducci Music Trust, which supports young musicians and brings live music into schools.
Matthew plays a 1603 Brothers Amati violin, ‘The Hurwitz ex Cooper’.
Contact me