Beethoven & Brahms String Quartets

Opus 13 are making their Sheffield debut at the Upper Chapel on Saturday 24 October, with a programme that puts Beethoven and Brahms side by side. It's their first time playing in the city, and they're bringing a set that spans a couple of centuries of string quartet writing.

The evening is built around the two big names on the bill. Beethoven and Brahms are the heavyweights here, and their quartets are the kind of things that usually anchor a programme like this. But there's a third name in the mix: Thomas Adès, a contemporary composer whose work sits alongside them. Putting his music in the same set as the older records gives you a bit of a timeline to follow, from the classical foundations of Beethoven and Brahms through to something written in our own time.

There's a bit of context to the name, too. Opus 13 isn't just a label; they're the winners of the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet competition, a prize that puts them on the map well before they reach Sheffield. This is their first time playing here, so it's a debut in every sense of the word.

It all happens at the Upper Chapel, part of Sheffield Theatres, on Saturday 24 October, starting at 19:00. The programme brings together Beethoven, Brahms and Adès in one evening, with Opus 13 making their first appearance in the city.