Can’t attend the 2010 Banff International String Quartet Competition (BISQC) in person? Tune your ears to your nearest radio or internet connection…

Beginning August 30, nine young quartets from six countries will gather in Banff for the 10^th BISQC. And while the best way to experience BISQC is in person at The Banff Centre, you can tune in across Canada, and around the world through live radio broadcasts, and on-demand streaming.

In partnership with The Banff Centre, CBC Radio 2 will deliver complete competition coverage via live concert streaming, interviews, competition highlights, and updates by CBC’s Bill Richardson, host of In Concert, and Julie Nesrallah, host of Tempo. Tempo will carry daily reports along with performance highlights Tuesday, August 31 to Friday, September 3. On Sunday, September 5, In Concert will feature interviews, analysis, and performance highlights from the week. You can also experience the final competition live on Sunday at 2 p.m. MDT at cbc.ca/radio2, and on September 6th, Tempo will present a two-hour wrap-up of the finals.

Get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of all things BISQC through the BISQC blog www.banffcentre.ca/bisqc/2010/ featuring daily updates during the competition week.

The quartets selected to compete in 2010 include the Afiara String Quartet (Canada), Amaryllis Quartet (Germany/Switzerland), Asasello Quartet (Germany), Atrium String Quartet (Russia), Cecilia String Quartet (Canada), Hausmann Quartet (USA), Noga Quartet (France), Peresson Quartet (USA), and the Quatuor Zaide (France).

Created in 1983 to mark the 50th anniversary of The Banff Centre, and presented every three years, BISQC is open to quartets of all nationalities whose members are all under the age of 35. Awards include $100,000 in cash and prizes, including the offer of a Banff Centre residency and CD recording, a set of bows by internationally-renowned Canadian bow maker François Malo, and a recital tour of Europe and North America.