The Kwartludium ensemble was established in 2002. It is composed of Dagna Sadkowska (violin), Michał Górczyński (clarinet, bass clarinet), Paweł Nowicki (percussion) and Piotr Nowicki (piano). Since its inception, the ensemble focused on the performance of new music, composed especially for its instrumental cast. Contemporary improvised music occupies a significant position in the activities of the ensemble. KWARTLUDIUM also includes in its repertoire graphic and intuitive compositions by Karlheinz Stockhausen, Carl Bergstroem-Nielsen, Roman Haubenstock-Ramati, Cornelius Cardew, Christian Wolff, and Dubravko Detoni.
The ensemble has given a large number of Polish and international first performances. It has appeared at the Warsaw Autumn festivals (2003–07), Four Cultures Dialogue in Łódź, Unsound in Cracow and New York, Ensemble Europa in Cologne, C3 in Berlin, Open Form Festival in Copenhagen, Loop Festival in Brussels, and many others.
In 2007 the ensemble was awarded a Young Poland scholarship by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage. It has released three CDs on the DUX label; the latest, out in 2013, presents a programme of graphic compositions recorded in cooperation with leading British electronic musician Scanner.
In 2009 KWARTLUDIUM was one of 21 contemporary music ensembles to participate in Re:New Music, a prestigious European project presenting the work of selected composers. In 2012 the ensemble was again invited to participate in New Music: New Audiences, planned for 2013–14. Over these two years, musicians will develop their concert approach in practice, looking for new audiences and opening new educational forms of presentation of modern music.
