The Jerusalem Quartet has announced that violist Alexander Gordon Zemtsov will join the ensemble as it enters its fourth decade of music-making, following the departure of longtime member Ori Kam last year.
Currently professor of viola in Cologne and Lausanne, Zemtsov has built an international career as both a soloist and chamber musician. The Jerusalem Quartet described him as “among the most respected and influential musicians of our generation.”
The announcement was made in a statement shared by the quartet during its current 2025–26 season, which marks the ensemble’s 30th anniversary. Founding members Alexander Pavlovsky, Sergei Bresler, and Kyril Zlotnikov described the season as “truly special,” highlighting performances of major works from the quartet repertoire, including Dmitri Shostakovich’s quartet cycle, Joseph Haydn’s “Sunrise” Quartet, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Dissonance” Quartet, and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Op. 130 with the Grosse Fuge. The ensemble also performed quartets by Maurice Ravel and Leoš Janáček.
Among the season’s highlights, the quartet noted the premiere of Shulamit Ran’s Betwixt and Between, Quartet No. 4, as well as collaborations with pianist Elisabeth Leonskaja and cellist Gary Hoffman.
During the season, the quartet performed with violists Mathis Rochat and Alexander Gordon Zemtsov. In their statement, the musicians said that from their first rehearsals with Zemtsov there was “a clear sense of personal and artistic chemistry” and a shared commitment to the quartet’s artistic values.
Founded in 1993, the Jerusalem Quartet has become one of the leading chamber ensembles of its generation, known for interpretations spanning both the classical and modern repertoire. The group has recorded extensively for labels including BIS Records and Harmonia Mundi, receiving distinctions such as the Diapason d’Or and the BBC Music Magazine Award. Their discography includes complete quartet cycles by Béla Bartók, recordings of Franz Schubert and Beethoven, and projects such as The Yiddish Cabaret, exploring Jewish music in Central Europe between the world wars.
Their most recent BIS release, issued in 2025, features Shostakovich’s Quartets Nos. 2, 7, and 10.
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