CONSONE QUARTET perform at SNEMF
Vienna in the late 1700s and early 1800s was a hive of musical creativity; Haydn, Mozart, and Schubert all lived and worked there – with the former, the so-called “father of the string quartet” proving to be a great inspiration to both of the younger composers. Haydn and Mozart are known to have played string quartets together. Indeed, Mozart dedicated a set of six quartets to his friend and inspiration. Mozart was a huge inspiration for Schubert, “O Mozart! Immortal Mozart! What countless impressions of a brighter, better life hast thou stamped upon our souls!”
The Consone Quartet celebrates these greats of the classical era in a programme of Haydn, Mozart and Schubert.
Tickets £12, £10 concessions. Buy on the door, from Bridgewood and Neitzert at 146 Stoke Newington Church St, or on-line at wegottickets.com (with a 10% booking fee)
THE CONSONE QUARTET
Agata Daraskaite, violin
Magdalena Loth-Hill, violin
Elitsa Bogdanova, viola
George Ross, cello
PROGRAMME
- Schubert Overture D.8a
- Haydn Op.50/5
- Mozart K.387
W.A. MOZART (1756-1791): STRING QUARTET NO. 14 IN G MAJOR, K. 387
- Allegro vivace assai
- Menuetto, Trio
- Andante cantabile
- Molto allegro
Nicknamed the “Spring” quartet, Mozart’s String Quartet No. 14 in G major was composed in late 1782, when a 26-year-old Mozart was new on the Viennese musical scene. Mozart met with Joseph Haydn soon after arriving in Vienna and the two struck up a friendship. Indeed, they are known to have played chamber music together, along with two other Vienna-based composers of note – Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf and Johann Vanhal.
J. HAYDN (1732-1809): STRING QUARTET OP. 50 NO. 5 IN F MAJOR
- Allegro moderato
- Poco adagio
- Tempo di menuetto: Allegretto
- Finale : Vivace
Composed in 1787 and dedicated to King Frederick William II of Prussia, earning them the title The Prussian Quartets, Josef Haydn’s Opus 50 was his first complete set of quartets since the Opus 33. While the Opus 33 set is generally more accessible to a wider audience, Opus 50 is already more intellectual and experimental.
FRANZ SCHUBERT (1797-1828) OVERTURE IN C MINOR D8A
Franz Schubert’s early Overture in C minor, D8A, dates from his time as a day student at the Imperial Grammar School in Vienna. Written to be played in the family home by Franz Schubert himself, his father and brothers, the piece started out life as a quintet. It was dedicated in its original setting to the composer’s brother, Ferdinand, who was the first violinist of the family ensemble and who was responsible for the careful preservation of Franz Schubert’s early works. The piece is loosely modeled on the overture to Cherubini’s German opera, “Faniska”, which was frequently performed in Vienna during Schubert’s school years.
BIOGRAPHY
Winners of the 2016 Royal Over-Seas League Strings/Keyboard Ensemble Prize, London based Consone Quartet is dedicated to exploring and recreating the sound-worlds of the classical and early romantic string quartet repertoire through period instrument performance.
The quartet’s success at the finals of the 2015 York Early Music International Young Artists Competition brought them the EUBO Development Trust prize and a place on the prestigious Eeemerging Scheme (European Emerging Ensembles) supporting young early music ensembles within the framework of the Creative Europe programme. Currently in the second year of EEEmerging, the group has performed at the 2015 REMA showcase in Prague, the 2015 Concerts in the West series, NCEM in York, AMUZ in Belgium, Ambronay Festival in France, and Ghislieri Musica in Pavia, Italy. Consone will be returning to Ambronay for a residency and for the 2017 festival.
Recent performances took place at Cadogan Hall, Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace and ‘Bulgaria’ Chamber Hall in Sofia. The quartet also performed for the BBC programme “Between the Ears”,broadcast on Radio 3.
https://youtu.be/EtSiYPWU2M4
Consone has participated in master classes with Lucy Russell, Catherine Martin, Jean Patterson, Kati Debretzeni, and members of Ironwood (Australia), as well as Richard Ireland and Richard Lester (as part of Chamber Studio).
Last year the group was selected as one of the young ensembles on the Brighton Early Music Live! Scheme.
Future engagements include concerts at Buxton Festival, York Early Music Festival, Lake District Summer Music, Brighton Early Music Festival, Vienna with Ashley Solomon (flute) and Colin Lawson (clarinet) as well as a joint recital at the Wigmore Hall.
