The Brodsky Quartet plays three of Beethoven's string quartets, from Op.18 No.3 to the Grosse Fuge, alongside works by Karen Tanaka and Paul Cassidy for the bicentenary of Beethoven's death.
The Brodsky Quartet play Queen Elizabeth Hall on Saturday 26 June 2027, a concert that marks the bicentenary of Beethoven's death. The programme, Beethoven – Now, Then & Forever, traces the composer's development through three string quartets: Op.18 No.3 from the beginning of his career, Op.130 from the later years, and the Grosse Fuge Op.133, one of his final and most challenging works. The evening closes with Op.130 ending as Beethoven originally conceived it, with the Grosse Fuge following on.
Those three quartets aren't the only things on the bill. Karen Tanaka's At the grave of Beethoven is a new commission that reflects on the first completed string quartet, Op.18 No.3. Beside it, violist Paul Cassidy has arranged Bach's Adagio and Fugue BWV.1005, spreading the intricate lines of the original across four players. The whole thing is built around the idea of Beethoven's arc, with contemporary and past musical reflections played alongside the quartets themselves.
The Brodsky Quartet have been making music together for almost as long as Beethoven's 56-year lifetime, and that's a good bit of context to keep in mind for a programme that looks at a whole career in one go. They've earned a reputation for playing with a certain intensity — The Strad called it an 'edge-of-your-seat performance' and BBC Music Magazine noted 'a rare degree of intensity'.
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It's a matinee, starting at 3pm and running for about three hours and five minutes. Standard entry is from £24, with concessions available. The venue is Queen Elizabeth Hall at the Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX.
Date
Saturday, 26 June 2027
15:00
Price
Paid
Recommended Age
+14 years
