From Dreams to Dialogue: The Journey of the Moser Quartet in the MERITA Project

Stories | June 13, 2025

In the vibrant cultural city of Basel, a story of passion, friendship, and music unfolds – a story that brought four musicians from across the world together to form the Moser Quartet. Guest of one of the episodes of the MERITA Project podcast, the ensemble shares the story of the start of their journey, their creative process, and their emotional experience during the European Union co-financed MERITA residency.

A Multinational Harmony

Konnichiwa, Hola, Buon dia, Ciao – is the greeting by Kanon (Japan), Patricia (Spain), Arianna (Valencia), and Lea (Italy) on the podcast. Together, they form a plural and dynamic string quartet and embody the spirit of intercultural conversation.

They first met in Basel, not only at the prestigious music academy but through random encounters as well. Arianna and Lea became acquainted first, as they shared a dorm room in a student dormitory directly across from the academy. It was there, on a terrace under Basel’s sky, that the idea of forming a quartet was first dreamed aloud.

Kanon and Patricia joined later – united by youth orchestras and early chamber music projects. Though Kanon had considered carrying on a London quartet, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic refocused his attention to Basel, where fate and friendship summoned him into the new Moser quartet.

The Birth of the Moser Quartet

When it came to naming the group, the quartet drew inspiration from their shared surroundings. From the window of their residence, they could see the Moser House, a building of the Basel music academy. They are not Swiss, but Basel had become home, the city that brought them together. Naming themselves the Moser Quartet was a tribute to it.

Embarking on MERITA: Music as Dialogue

The Moser Quartet entered the MERITA project with the hope of producing an extremely personal and innovative project. MERITA provided them with the freedom, machinery, and resources they had been longing for to not only refine their musical ideas but also to explore how performance can create emotional and cultural dialogue.

Their assigned theme: music as intercultural dialogue – became the heart of their project. Drawing from their different cultural backgrounds and musical experiences, they created a performance that goes beyond traditional classical music. In a unique venue with four corner doors, the quartet began their concerts by singing Gregorian chant, moving through the space, and guiding the audience into the emotional universe of Ligeti’s first string quartet.

More Than Music: A Performative Experience

The residency allowed them to take their artistry in ways beyond usual. The performing aspects of the work, namely dance, acting, spatial interaction, were not theatrical tools, but tools to bridge closer to grasping the music and to one another. This, they believe, is what made their final performance resonate so strongly with audiences.

“People laughed, they felt fear, intimacy, discomfort, and then relief,” they reflect back.“That’s exactly the variety of emotional experience we hope to offer.”

Looking Forward

The Moser Quartet envisions a lifetime of balancing traditional repertoire with innovative projects like the one developed in MERITA. They aim not only to execute the masterworks of string quartet literature to perfection but to reimagine the possibilities for classical music to be heard – intimately, with risk-taking, and with emotional impact.
Their message to the public is simple but genuine: Come listen. Experience the unique energy of four musicians who dared to dream, to innovate, and to turn diversity into harmony.