Guided by the search for ever more intimate chamber music, French musicians Raphaël Béreau and Jean-Samuel Bez, create an atmosphere of softness and subtlety arising from the combination of the timbres of the violin and the guitar.

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Based in Vienna, the duo was formed in the city where both musicians completed their musical studies. They were students at the University of Music: Raphaël studied guitar with Alvaro Pierri, while Jean-Samuel studied violin with Michael Frischenschlager.

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Long-time friends, they first met during high school in Dijon’s music-focused classes. Together, they founded a string and guitar quintet, performing across Burgundy for three years. Their first recording, a live album of Quintette Bichromie—a piece commissioned from composer Guy Leclercq—was released by Delatour. The ensemble unanimously won the PSIR Prize in Strasbourg in 2011 for a performance combining the quintet with a dancer.

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After leaving Burgundy, each pursued advanced training: Jean-Samuel studied in Italy with Igor Volochine and at the conservatories of Rueil-Malmaison and Brussels; Raphaël continued his studies with Christian Rivet in Paris before enrolling at the University of Quebec in Montreal. This Canadian connection became significant for the duo, particularly through a project initiated by Jean-Samuel in 2016 with Quebec pianist Jean-Luc Therrien. Their recording, Fantaisies, released by Klarthe in 2022, received critical acclaim and led to three major tours across Europe and Canada.

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This period was also marked by international competitions, particularly in chamber music, where they won first prize at the Luigi Zanuccolli Competition. Raphaël achieved further success, earning first prizes at the Elche and Schweinfurt competitions alongside guitarist Tizoc Romero. Their ensemble, named R2T2, was invited to the Paris International Guitar Festival and completed two tours in India.

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