Music Chamber

In 1781 Haydn had completed his Opus 33 set of string quartets and these became the source of much study by Mozart who set about composing his own set of six quartets. These were published in Vienna in 1785 and dedicated to Haydn, whose influence can be found throughout the works. Mozart did not find this composition easy and describes the quartets as the fruits of long and arduous work, so it must have been rewarding to find that not only did Haydn find them pleasing but they also influenced his later work. This is the only one of the six quartets to be written in a minor key and it begins with a sotto voce octave leap on the first violin, which also introduces the second subject in F major. There is much contrapuntal development in the central section of the movement. The second ternary movement is in F major and in compound time. The minuet which follows has a D major trio in which the violin has a melody in a dotted rhythm which is accompanied by plucked strings. Dotted rhythms also feature in the lyrical theme of the final movement which is punctuated with a repeated note figure. There are four variations of this theme before the final più allegro which brings the work back to D minor, only to end in the major key. © Christine Talbot-Cooper 2011

 

Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) String Quartet No 2 in F major, Op 92

Allegro sostenuto ~ Adagio ~ Allegro-Andante Molto-Allegro I

 

The circumstances under which this string quartet was composed had a great influence on the content of the work. When the Nazis invaded Russia in 1941, Prokofiev was one of a number of musicians and other artists who, for safety,  travelled to Nalchik, a town in the Caucasus mountains. There he was given access to files of Kabardinian folk songs and encouraged, together with other musicians, to make use of them in his compositions. So it was that in 1942 Prokofiev wrote this string quartet. Unlike other composers who used the folk music in their work, Prokofiev made no attempt to dress it up and soften its melodic and rhythmic content, but tried to be true to its original form. The first performance was given in Moscow by the Beethoven Quartet and it became immediately popular with the public, if not the critics. The first movement is based on a dance, Udzh Starikov. Also featured is a song, Sosruko, which is played by the violin while the other three instruments play an accompaniment which sounds very much like an accordion – one of many colourful effects which the composer uses throughout the work, which is effortlessly combined with classical sonata form in this movement. The second movement begins with a beautiful Kabardian love song played by the cello in its higher register, with a middle section which features the strings playing pizzicato and staccato in imitation of a three-stringed fiddle with a long neck which was to be found in the region. The third movement is a rondo which has several recurring themes and includes a passionate middle section which is introduced by a cello cadenza. © Christine Talbot-Cooper 2011

 

 

Formed in 2009, all four members of The Artesian Quartet are studying at the Royal Academy of Music. Quick to take on as many opportunities as possible, they were guided from the start by the London String Quartet Foundation, as well as the expert coaching of appraised chamber musicians. These include Garfield Jackson (Endellion Quartet), Roger Tapping (Takacs Quartet), Martin Outram (Maggini Quartet) and Marc Johnson (Vermeer Quartet). The quartet’s growing reputation has caused them to travel all over the country. They have performed in many prestigious chamber music venues, including the Wigmore Hall and Southbank Centre in London, and the Colston Hall in Bristol. In their second year together, they were invited to collaborate with the Barbirolli Quartet to perform Mendelssohn Octet at Eaton Square, and have since been asked to perform the work again on numerous occasions, such as in concert series at the Vine Hall School, and Gresham College. In August 2011, the quartet gave their BBC Proms debut, performing the10th String Quartet of South African born composer, Kevin Volans, broadcast on BBC Radio 3. The following month they were invited to travel to Turkey for a performance at the Turkish-British Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Istanbul. They currently hold one of the Academy’s four Davey-Poznanski Quartet Scholarships, a programme designed to increase coaching and performance.