Carducci Quartet at the CIT Cork School of Music, January 29th 2015.

The Carducci Quartet introduced their Shostakovich 15 project as the opening event of the Cork Orchestral Society’s 2015 programme. This year will be the fortieth anniversary of the death of Shostakovich. To commemorate this event, the Carducci Quartet will play all fifteen of Shostakovich’s string quartets in different venues in Europe and North and South America throughout the year. The quartet also plan to play the whole cycle on the 9th of August in Shakespeare’s Globe in London, to mark the anniversary of his death. Tonight the quartet have selected three string quartets to play from different stages of Shostakovich’s life and career.

After tuning briefly off stage the Carducci Quartet arrived on stage a few minutes late in a rather business like fashion. They make no introductions and immediately launch into the first work on the programme, Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 1 in C major. In the opening moderato, the lightness of the upper parts complements the richness and depth of the cello line. The mood becomes more playful with an underlying sense of unease as the movement progressed. A brief reflective silence precedes the second movement, which opens with a melancholic viola solo from Eoin Schmidt-Martin. There is a darker quality to the music, which is contrasted by interspersed lighter episodes. The third movement is more dance-like in nature; however, the same sense of underlying darkness still lingers beneath the surface. The final movement is driven by the energy of the bass line and the virtuosic violin part, which first violinist Matthew Denton and his wife cellist Emma Denton appear to take great pleasure in performing.

The first movement of String Quartet No. 4 in D major is more dissonant than the work previously heard. These dissonances build throughout, reaching a crescendo with a rage-like passion. In contrast, the slower andantino is more lyrical; soft and tinged with sadness. Within the final movement, the music becomes fervent, with the quartet nearly attacking their instruments with harsher bowings and rough pizzicato. This work proved to be the highlight of the night, leaving the audience mesmerised before the interval.

The quartet open the second half of the concert with the String Quartet No. 12 in D flat major. Described as the ‘musicologist’s favourite’ due in part to Shostakovich’s use of a twelve-tone note row, this work is incredibly virtuosic and challenging to the ear at times. Although the work appears to have many movements, the movements are quite short and can be difficult to discern from each other. In the opening movement the quartet bring out the stark, unsettling nature of the music admirably well. As the work progresses, the quartet convey a wide variety of emotions in their playing; from anger, to anxiety, to despair. This emotional intensity steadily builds and then becomes more subdued, giving a sense of hopelessness, before building up with a different emotion and subsiding once again. In the final movement it feels like the members of the quartet are competing against each other to be heard. The music becomes coarser with the shrillness of the higher line contrasting with the dark, gritty bass line, before ending definitively in a somewhat triumphant manner.

The performance of the Carducci Quartet as a whole is very expressive, and brings to life the works of a world renowned composer. A vibrant energy exists within the group, which is almost tangible and they communicate seamlessly with each other. They play with exquisite attention to detail, performing with great aplomb. String Quartet No. 12  offers an impressive way to end the night, with a dramatic finale.

Programme:

Dmitri Shostakovich:

String Quartet No. 1 in C major, Op. 49

String Quartet No. 4 in D major, Op. 83

String Quartet No. 12 in Db major, Op. 133