The Great Barn, Hellens

This programme comprises two early works and one swansong emanating from three composers who left an indelible mark on 20th Century music. The quintessentially English, yet mystic, work by Herbert Howells not only has a ‘vocal’ quality (as one might expect from a supreme master of choral music) but is also ground-breaking. Hungarian folk music and rhythms infuse Bartok’s youthful, colourful Piano Quintet, a fascinating blend of old and new, mercifully rescued from obscurity. Between these two compositions will be heard Shostakovich’s final work, one of resignation rather than unbearable sadness, completed shortly before his death: dark, though serene, and atmospheric to the core, it makes the clearest reference in the closing Adagio to Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight’ Sonata.

Christian Blackshaw piano,
Maya Iwabuchi violin
Josef Špaček violin
Máté Szücs viola
Bruno Delepelaire cello
Matthew Hunt (clarinet)

PROGRAMME
Herbert Howells Rhapsodic Quintet for Clarinet & Strings, op. 31
Shostakovich Sonata for Viola and Piano, op. 147
Bartók Piano Quintet

Great Barn, Hellens Manor

We are proud to welcome in this concert two Hellensmusic Alumni who are now active professionals in the classical music world. They come to Hellens to perform with our stellar team of musicians.

Three pivotal and glorious works in the chamber music repertoire make up this programme. Haydn’s Op 20 set of six string quartets represents a landmark in the development of the genre, the sixth incorporating endless musical incident within a concise structure. Deeply indebted though Mozart was to the older Haydn, it was the mellifluous playing of Anton Stadler that was the inspiration behind the creation of Mozart’s sublime Clarinet Quintet, a work of beauty and perfect symmetry. A century later, the wonderful playing of Richard Mühlfeld was the catalyst for Brahms to write his autumnal Clarinet Quintet, though the work is performed here in Brahms’ own much-acclaimed arrangement for viola and string quartet.

Maya Iwabuchi violin
Nicolas Dupont violin
Máté Szücs viola
Luke Turrel viola,
Bruno Delepelaire cello
Matthew Hunt clarinet

PROGRAMME
J. Haydn String Quartet in A Major, op. 20, No. 6
W. A. Mozart Clarinet Quintet in A Major K. 581
J. Brahms Clarinet Quintet, op. 115 (two-viola version – 2 violins & cello)

Great Barn, Hellens Manor

An exhilarating and moving evening charting the friendship and heritage of four of Hungary’s most influential composers of the 20th Century.

The multi-faceted five-movement Serenade for String Trio by the young Dohnányi has Magyar elements but the composer’s roots are embedded in German romanticism. The music of Bartók and Kodály, however, is steeped in Hungarian folk music, a life-long preoccupation for them both: for Leó Weiner there was to be a later interest in it. Bartók’s Contrasts, in which two dances flank a movement entitled ‘Relaxation’, is indeed variegated, exploring the different timbres of clarinet, violin and piano. Flair and virtuosity characterize the short Peregi Verbunk by Leó Weiner. In Kodály’s Adagio, sonorous harmonies on the piano wonderfully complement the viola’s heartfelt melody. The concert ends, as it began, with Dohnányi: his opulent Piano Quintet No 1, a work redolent of Schumann and Brahms, written when he was but 17 years of age!

Julien Quentin piano
Maya Iwabuchi violin
Josef Špaček violin
Máté Szücs viola
Bruno Delepelaire cello
Matthew Hunt clarinet

PROGRAMME
E. Dohnányi Serenade in C Major for String Trio, op. 10
B. Bartók Contrasts for Violin, Clarinet and Piano, Sz. 111
Leó Weiner Peregi Verbunk for Clarinet and Piano, op.40
Z. Kodály Adagio for Viola & Piano
E. Dohnányi Piano Quintet in C Minor, op.1

Chamber and solo repertoire by the Masterclass students

Hellensmusic Masterclass Programme has a unique, non-hierarchical approach to learning and mentoring which in the course of eight years has inspired dozens of aspiring professional musicians to fulfil their utmost potential.

Our masterclass students are the stars of tomorrow, and these performances give you an opportunity to hear them today. This concert is the culmination of a week of study with our resident artists.

Great Barn, Hellens Manor

Chamber and solo repertoire by the Masterclass students

Hellensmusic Masterclass Programme has a unique, non-hierarchical approach to learning and mentoring which in the course of eight years has inspired dozens of aspiring professional musicians to fulfil their utmost potential.

Our masterclass students are the stars of tomorrow, and these performances give you an opportunity to hear them today. This concert is the culmination of a week of study with our resident artists.