Enlightenment from inside a darkened room. It was given by Johannes Marmen to a large proportion of the Coffee Concerts audience, of whom 205 turned out early on Sunday to hear his young group make their debut in the series.
Such a high Continue reading Coffee Concert 21st October 2018 – Marmen Quartet – Review by Richard Amey, Worthing Herald
What joy to be restarting another coffee concert series, on an unusually warm October morning with golden leaves falling in bright sunshine. The Marmen Quartet is new to us, having formed as recently as 2013 at the Royal College of Music. They gave an extraordinary Continue reading Coffee Concert 21st October 2018 – Marmen Quartet – Review by Andrew Polmear
All three of today’s works have a special relationship with semitones. For example, the Haydn opens with one that metamorphoses into its main theme; the Janáček opens with a harsh F#-G clash which sets the tone of this emotionally-charged piece; the Beethoven, famously, is built around the opening two embedded pairs of semitones. You can probably spot more examples.
Josef Haydn (1732-1809) String Quartet Op. 74 No.1 in C (1793)
Allegro
Andantino grazioso
Menuet & Trio
Finale: Vivace
Haydn’s six ‘Apponyi’ quartets (Op 71 and 74) were written in 1792 & 1793 between his two extended visits to London. Prince Nicholas Esterházy, Haydn’s patron to whom he was devoted, had Continue reading 21st October 2018 – Marmen Quartet – Programme notes by Chris Darwin
Watching four different bodies combine on stage is one of the fascinations of seeing small-scale ensembles perform in chamber music concerts. We can’t know freely their actual personalities but we can search for clues in how they perform. Our eyes are drawn in all directions.
Here was another example in the frequent flow of Coffee Concert debut-making groups already operating at high level. This time, Quatuor Arod from Paris – intriguingly Continue reading Coffee Concert 29th April 2018 – Review by Richard Amey, Worthing Herald
When you set out to go to a concert featuring well-known quartets by Haydn and Beethoven, you might be forgiven for thinking that you know what to expect. With Quatuor Arod you would be wrong. They take well-known pieces and play them as though Continue reading Coffee Concert 29th April 2018 Quatuor Arod – Review by Andrew Polmear
Josef Haydn (1732-1809) String Quartet in G (minor) Op 74/3, ‘Rider’ (1793)
Allegro
Largo assai
Menuet and Trio
Finale: Allegro con brio
Haydn’s six ‘Apponyi‘ quartets (Ops 71 and 74) were written in 1792 & 1793 between his two extended visits to London. Prince Nicholas Esterházy, Haydn’s patron to whom he was devoted, had died in the autumn of 1790. His successor, Prince Anton, did not care for music and disbanded the Esterházy orchestra, for whom Haydn had composed for the previous 30 or so years. However, he did keep Haydn on, on full pay, with only nominal duties. Haydn was thus free to apply for leave to accept Johann Peter Salomon’s offer to spend a year in London (against Mozart’s advice, who thought the 58 year-old master too old for such jaunts). London’s crowded, vibrant musical scene challenged and exhilarated Haydn, and his six new ‘London‘ symphonies, written for a larger orchestra, hall and audience than at Esterházy, were a sensation. Haydn returned home in the summer of 1792, to a Vienna without Mozart, who had died in December just short of his 35th birthday. Continue reading 29th April 2018 – Quatuor Arod – Programme notes by Chris Darwin
