Borealis String Quartet

Borealis String Quartet performing Paul Alexander’s Galatea at the JRSP, July 2025.

The Borealis String Quartet is an internationally acclaimed ensemble, reinterpreting classical masterpieces with exceptional intensity and focus. Founded in Vancouver in 2000, the Borealis has since toured extensively throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

The Borealis was the sole classical group selected for the Great Canadian Dream Competition, and consequently performed for the Prime Minister at Parliament Hill in Ottawa. In addition to the group’s unwavering commitment to classical quartet literature, the Borealis is an avid proponent of Canadian composition and has worked closely with many contemporary composers, including Paul Alexander.

The Borealis was String Quartet-in-Residence at the University of British Columbia for over ten years. They now serve as faculty and Quartet-in-Residence at Kwantlen Polytechnic University and Langley Community Music School.

The Borealis String Quartet’s Performance Residency at the Jeffrey Rubinoff Sculpture Park began in 2009 with the creation of the annual Masters of Counterpoint performance series. This series explores parallel approaches to abstraction through counterpoint in both music and the sculptures of Jeffrey Rubinoff. During his lifetime, Rubinoff personally selected the series repertoire—Bach, Beethoven, and Shostakovich—to illustrate his assertion that:

“Music is sculpture in elastic space, sculpture is music in plastic space.”

In recent years, the series has expanded to include additional composers, including contemporary collaborators of the Borealis String Quartet. In July 2025, the Borealis String Quartet premiered Vancouver-based composer Paul Alexander’s piece Galatea, written for the ensemble’s performance at the Jeffrey Rubinoff Sculpture Park.