Biography

Grzegorz Kotow was born in Walbrzych (Poland) in 1972. As founder and violinist of the Szymanowski Quartet since 1995, Grzegorz Kotow is a welcome guest at internationally renowned festivals such as Schleswig-Holstein and Rheingau, Mozartfest Würzburg, Bregenz and Schwetzingen, Niedersächsische Musiktage as well as in Lockenhaus, Cheltenham, London, Bath and Macao Festival.
An extended tours throughout Australia and Asia introduced the Szymanowski Quartet to a wide audience. Meanwhile, the Quartet has already performed at Carnegie Hall New York, Wigmore Hall London, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Konzerthaus Berlin, Grünewald Hall Stockholm, Shanghai Concert Hall as well as at the Perth Festival and the BBC Proms. 

Numerous prizes and awards, among them at the competitions in Melbourne, Osaka, Munich and Florence, confirm the ensemble's extraordinarily high standard. Grzegorz Kotow studied violin with Prof. Krzysztof Wegrzyn and chamber music with Hatto Beyerle at the University of Music and Drama in Hanover. In addition to its busy concert schedule, the Szymanowski Quartet has polished its interpretations by working regularly with Isaac Stern, Walter Levin, the Amadeus and Emerson Quartets, the Juilliard String Quartet, the Guarneri Quartet, and, recently, in dialogue with Alfred Brendel.

Since autumn of 2000, Grzegorz Kotow teaches violin and chamber music at the Hanover University of Music and Drama and gives regulary master classes in Europe, USA and Asia.

With the Szymanowski quartet, Grzegorz Kotow was a member of the BBC's New Generation Artists scheme, and numerous recordings from various BBC concert series document its artistic versatility.

In the 2009/10 season, together with the Szymanowski Quartet, Grzegorz Kotow returns two times to the USA and follows re-invitations to New York, Washington D. C., San Diego and others.
Furthermore, the Szymanowski Quartet plays at the Bayer AG Leverkusen, returns to the Wigmore Hall London, and gives a concert at the Schubertiade Schwarzenberg together with the Jerusalem Quartet. Moreover, the Szymanowski Quartet appears at numerous renowned festivals such as the Schumannfest in Salzburg, Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Adrian Brendel's chamber music festival "Music at Plush", and Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker. At the Zeist Music Days (Netherlands), the Szymanowski Quartet performs alongside Paul Meyer (clarinet) and Alexej Ogrintchouk (oboe). A cooperation with Oleg Maisenberg leads the Quartet e. g. to the Concert House Vienna.

Together with pianist, Kit Armstrong, Grzegorz Kotow will present piano quartets and quintets, for example on the occasion of the 80th anniversary festivities for Alfred Brendel at the Musikverein Vienna and at the Gewandhaus Leipzig. In July 2010, Grzegorz Kotow will perform at Hong Kong International Chamber Music Festival with Peter Jablonski ( Piano ), Trey Lee ( Cello ), Nils Mönkemeyer ( Viola ), Chen Halevi ( Clarinet ).

In autumn 2009 the label Cavi-music published "Paris", the first part of a 3-CD-series, in which the Szymanowski Quartet explores the work and influences of its patron, Karol Szymanowski, throughout three of the most important musical centres at the beginning of the 20th century: Paris, Vienna and Moscow

Since 2010 Grzegorz Kotow is the Chairman of  " Hannoversche Gesellschaft für Neue Musik"