Quartet Volatus Takes Flight: Japanese Toho Gakuen String Quartet, Winner of Beethoven International Music Competition UK 2025
- WOMCO
- Sep 13, 2025
- 3 min read
Quartet Volatus, the string quartet from the Toho Gakuen School of Music in Japan, was awarded the Absolute First Prize in the Chamber Music category at the 2025 Season 3 Beethoven International Music Competition UK. The competition ran from April 1 to July 1, 2025, with results announced on July 21. Their winning performance featured Mendelssohn’s String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 13. The ensemble consists of Toma Arakawa (1st Violin), Soko Watanabe (2nd Violin), Suzune Komaki (Viola), and Issei Aihara (Cello).
Could you tell us a bit about how your chamber group was formed and what playing music together means to your group?
Quartet Volatus:
"We formed in our second year at Toho Gakuen Music High School to take a chamber music class. After studying for a year, we entered this competition to test our abilities. Everyone has their own approach to music. Playing with people who have different ideas can provide new inspiration. We believe this is the essence of chamber music. We also feel that the inspiration we get from other members is useful for solo playing.“
How did your chamber group prepare for the award-winning video performance of Mendelssohn String Quartet No.2 in a-minor, and what was the rehearsal process like?
Quartet Volatus:
"Our video is of a school concert. Only those who passed the audition were allowed to perform. The Mendelssohn String Quartet No. 2 spent a long time preparing for this concert.
During rehearsals, we focused on playing in sync with each other's breathing. We recorded our performances and listened to them repeatedly in order to create our ideal music."
Were there any memorable moments during rehearsals?
Quartet Volatus:
"One day, we got so caught up in our conversation that we ended up talking for about two hours without practicing, even though we had prepared the instruments. It may not have been productive, but we had a great time."
Is there anyone your chamber group would like to thank?
Quartet Volatus:
"We are grateful to the two teachers who guided me so passionately: Mr. Kikuei Ikeda and Mrs. Nobuko Yamazaki. We also thank everyone who supported our challenge, starting with our families."
Biography
Formed in December 2023 by four second-year students of the Music Department at Toho Girls’ High School (coeducational), Quartet Volatus takes its name from the Latin word “Volatus”, meaning “flight.” The ensemble chose this name to express their wish to free the spirit through music, to let the emotions and imagination of their listeners soar, to deliver music as free as a bird in flight, and to symbolize their own aspirations to take wing toward the future.
The quartet achieved outstanding results in the chamber music examinations of the Toho Gakuen School of Music and subsequently performed at the 115th Chamber Music Concert. In 2025, they were awarded First Prize in the Chamber Music Division of the Beethoven International Music Competition.
They have studied under the guidance of Nobuko Yamazaki and Kikue Ikeda.
Special thanks to violinist Soko Watanabe for sharing insights on behalf of the quartet.
