Many Musicians. One Collective…

The Aurelian Ensemble is a Chamber Music Collective of predominantly young Irish musicians, united by a shared passion for collaboration and ambitious chamber music. Rather than operating as a single fixed ensemble, the collective brings together different musicians and formations for individual projects, exploring repertoire from the familiar to the unexpected.

The ensemble was founded in 2026 by Carl Roewer, who brought together a group of young musicians all with a shared desire to perform Franz Schubert’s Octet in F major, D.803. The work’s extraordinary combination of intimacy, lyricism and symphonic ambition provided the starting point for the collective, and in August 2026 the ensemble made its debut with a three-concert tour through Killaloe, Kenmare and Cork, presented in association with the National String Quartet Foundation’s Young Artists Summer Tours.

While the Octet provided the impetus for the ensemble’s creation, it is only the beginning of the Aurelian Ensemble’s musical journey. The collective set-up is fluid, allowing its membership and instrumentation to develop according to the repertoire and ideas explored in each project. Future programmes may bring together different combinations of musicians, from intimate chamber formations to larger ensembles, creating opportunities for collaboration across instrumental disciplines, while attempting to focus mainly on the younger generation of Irish musicians.

The Aurelian Ensemble aims to create a space in which emerging performers can work together outside the structures of individual institutions and orchestras. Through concerts, collaborations and new projects, the ensemble hopes to foster a vibrant community of musicians while bringing ambitious chamber music to audiences in Ireland and beyond.