Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[name] => United Kingdom
[parent] => Array
(
[name] => Europe
)
)
[1] => Array
(
[name] => England
[parent] => Array
(
[name] => United Kingdom
)
)
)
Barbican Quartet – Haydn's 'Sun Quartets' – tickets to individual concerts - With Schubert, Schumann, Britten & Mendelssohn
Amarins Wierdsma violin
Kate Maloney violin
Christoph Slenczka viola
Yoanna Prodanova cello
The Barbican Quartet is an original voice on the international chamber music scene. Praised for their unique sound and character, as well as for intensely personal and intelligent performances, the Barbican Quartet celebrates the individual strengths of its members and at the same time forges these into a homogeneous entity, exploring with fervour both the great string quartet repertoire as well as contemporary music.
The Quartet currently holds the Nina Drucker Quartet Fellowship at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where they coach chamber music.
In June 2024 the Barbican Quartet released their debut CD, “Manifesto on Love”, on the Genuin label. Other exciting highlights of the past season include their debuts at the Elbphilharnonie Hamburg and return visits to the Montreal Chamber Music Festival and the Peasmarch Festival.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe famously described the string quartet as ‘a conversation between four intelligent people’ – elegant, eloquent and full of wit and liveliness. The Barbican Quartet draw together the voices of some of the quartet’s most brilliant and beloved creators in this weekend, from Franz Schubert and Felix Mendelssohn to Benjamin Britten and Robert Schumann. At the heart of their programme is the music of Joseph Haydn, often considered the father of the genre: the gloriously energetic ‘Sun Quartets’ Op. 20 mark a bright new dawn for the ensemble as the most sophisticated and intellectually ambitious of all musical groups.
To complement the four voices of Haydn’s ground-breaking works, we also hear several pieces ‘sung’ by strings: Schubert, Schumann and Mendelssohn were all consummate song composers, and some of their best-loved lieder are paired here with their original works for quartet to highlight the lyrical nature of their works across genres. Most famous among these is, of course, Schubert’s D minor Quartet ‘Death and the Maiden’. And from virtuoso violist Rebecca Clarke, we hear the achingly beautiful ‘Poem’, only discovered in the first years of this century, but written 100 years ago this year.
Talks on the music are given by Dr Katy Hamilton. A writer and broadcaster, she has provided talks for Wigmore Hall, BBC Proms and the Oxford Lieder Festival, and she is a frequent contributor to BBC Radio 3.
Itinerary
‘Variations: Haydn and Schubert’
Haydn, String Quartet Op.20 No.4 in D major
Schubert, ‘Death & the Maiden’ Song Arr.
Schubert, String Quartet No. 14 ‘Death & the Maiden’
‘Recitativo & Song: Haydn and Mendelssohn
Haydn, String Quartet Op.20 No.2 in C major
Mendelssohn, Song Arr. (tbc)
Mendelssohn, String Quartet No.2 in A minor
‘From the Classical to the Romantic: Haydn and Schumann’
Haydn, String Quartet Op.20 No.1 in E flat
Schumann, String Quartet No.3 in A major
Schumann, Song Arr. (tbc)
Haydn, String Quartet Op.20 No.6 in A major
Expert speaker
Dr Katy Hamilton
Writer and broadcaster, she has provided talks for, amongst others, Wigmore Hall, BBC Proms and the Oxford Lieder Festival. A frequent contributor to BBC Radio 3, Katy’s specialism is the music of the 19th and early 20th centuries, and she is the editor of Brahms in the Home and Concert Hall (2014) and Brahms in Context (2019). Katy has taught at the Royal College of Music, City Lit, and the Universities of Nottingham and Middlesex.
More tours led by Dr Katy Hamilton
Practicalities
US$40 mornings, US$50 evenings. Interval refreshments and a programme are also included.
Sign up to our e-newsletter
e-newsletter recipients are the first to hear about our future plans and our tours as they come on sale. By signing up you agree to our Privacy policy.
Or join our mailing list for a printed brochure
My Wishlist