Beethoven & Mendelssohn
The Arisva Quartet has been the resident quartet of the Cologne Classical Ensemble since 2008. Following their concert at the Dortmund Philharmonie, the *Westdeutsche Zeitung* ran the headline: “Arisva Quartet gives world-class ensembles a run for their money”. In 2024, they performed Heinz Pauels’ Second String Quartet for the first time in over 40 years. The Kölner Stadtanzeiger wrote enthusiastically: “The Arisva Quartet performed Pauels’ two Second String Quartets and Alexander Borodin’s, completed in 1881, with a gestural precision and beautiful tone, and with an almost orchestral richness and power.”
The Arisva Quartet will present two seminal works for string quartet that are closely linked. At the age of 18, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy composed his String Quartet No. 2 in A minor just a few months after the death of Ludwig van Beethoven. The influence of Beethoven’s string quartets is clearly evident. Despite Mendelssohn’s young age, this string quartet is a mature masterpiece and one of his most passionate and impressive chamber music compositions. Ludwig van Beethoven’s brilliant String Quartet No. 3 in D major is an absolute masterpiece. The Arisva Quartet will perform both works side by side here.
Now that our long-standing cellist, Risto Rajakorpi, has taken up the post of principal cellist with the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra in Finland, we are particularly delighted that Roger Morelló Ros will be performing with the Arisva Quartet for the first time in this concert. A native of Catalonia who has made Cologne his home, he has become a fixture amongst the city’s outstanding cellists. In high demand internationally as both a soloist and chamber musician, he has also delighted our audience as a member of 8CELLI.
Please note: contrary to our previous announcements, Hans Werner Henze’s String Quartet No. 1 from 1947 will not be performed! We have decided to make this change to the programme because the very high GEMA fees currently make a performance on our small scale financially unfeasible. Furthermore, the combination of Beethoven and Mendelssohn is a wonderful alternative that is sure to be very well received.
Line-up:
Alexander Prushinskiy, first violin
Svetlana Shtraub, second violin
Aliaksandr Senazhenski, viola
Roger Morelló Ros, cello
Programme:
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809–1847)
String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 13
1. Adagio – Allegro vivace
2. Adagio non lento
3. Intermezzo. Allegretto con moto – Allegro di molto
4. Finale. Presto – Adagio non lento
- Interval -
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827)
String Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 18, No. 3
1. Allegro
2. Andante con moto
3. Allegro
4. Presto
