The final of three lunchtime concerts by students from the Royal Irish Academy of Music [RIAM] and Cork School of Music [CSM]
These concerts are devoted to groups from RIAM’s & CSMs third level programmes (BMus, MMus, DipMus, Recital Artist Diploma) consisting of students training at the colleges for careers as professional musicians. A special selection process is linked to RIAMs / CSMs chamber music exams, from which, outstanding groups are selected for the Music for Wexford recital opportunities, offering a professional platform for pre-professional chamber musicians
Today we are delighted to present The Olympia Quartet From the Cork School of Music
Yevlaliia Yershova [violin]
Ellen Crowley [violin]
Charlie Duff [viola]
Adam Joyce [cello]
Programme
Mendelssohn - String Quartet no. 6 in F minor, Op. 80
Janáček - String Quartet no. 2 ‘Intimate Letters’
The Olympia Quartet was formed in September 2024 in the MTU Cork School of Music, under the tutelage of Christopher Marwood. The quartet consists of violinists Yevlaliia Yershova and Ellen Crowley, violist Charlie Duff, and cellist Adam Joyce. Their shared love for exploring a mix of classical and contemporary music, and their passion for bringing fresh energy and creativity to their performances, draws them together as an ensemble.
Since their formation, the Olympia Quartet have performed at venues in Kinsale, Youghal, Bantry and Kenmare, at the Aula Maxima in University College Cork, in the Whyte Recital Hall in RIAM as part of the EMPOWER Dublin event, and in the MTUCSM Curtis Auditorium. They are delighted to be returning to the West Cork Chamber Music Festival next summer.
Whether performing well-known chamber music works or exploring new compositions, the Olympia Quartet strive to make meaningful connections with their audience through music and showcasing their joy of playing together.
Yevlaliia Yershova began her violin journey at the age of four and graduated from the Stolyarsky Lyceum in Odesa (Ukraine), where she studied from the age of seven. Since moving to Ireland in 2022, she has studied with Elizabeth Charleson and is now in her second year of a Bachelor of Music degree at the MTU Cork School of Music, studying under Katherine Hunka. She is a laureate of several competitions in Ukraine, Ireland, Poland, and the Czech Republic. In 2025, she won the Feis Ceoil Aileen Gore Cup and was selected as one of five finalists for the RDS Music Bursary. As a soloist, Yevlaliia has participated in numerous masterclasses with renowned professors including Gernot Winischhofer (Austria), Zoya Nevgodovska (Germany), and Maurice Sklar (USA), and has performed with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland at the National Concert Hall as part of a masterclass with Maxim Vengerov.
Ellen Crowley began her violin studies at the age of five in the Cork ETB School of Music and is currently in her first year of her Bachelor of Music degree in the MTU Cork School of Music, studying violin under Elizabeth Charleson. Ellen was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Ireland in 2023 and of the Ulster Youth Orchestra in 2023 and 2024 and is currently a member of the Cork Concert Orchestra, the Adult Youth Orchestra of Ireland, the MTUCSM Symphony Orchestra and the Cork Fleischmann Symphony Orchestra. In 2023 Ellen was concertmaster of the Cork Youth Orchestra. She is a multiple prize winner is Feis Maitiú Corcaigh and MTUCSM Concerto and Recital Competitions. Ellen is an avid chamber musician and has been a member of various chamber groups over the years, more recently performing in the MTUCSM Vanbrugh Chamber Music Competition and the Crawford Art Gallery as part of their Music at Midday Series.
Ticket prices for this concert are €15, €12(concessions) €5 (students) and will be available on the door or at wwew.eventbright.ie (where a booking fee will apply and there are no refunds)