Arditti String Quartet
Irvine Arditti, violin
Ashot Sarkissjan, violin
Ralf Ehlers, viola
Lucas Fels, cello

Ludwig van Beethoven: Grosse Fuge, op. 133 / Benet Casablancas: * Quartet no.3 / Bartók: Quartet no. 3, Sz 85 / Maurice Ravel: Quartet

The Sabadell composer, Benet Casablancas, studied with Friedrich Cerha and is one of a number of contemporary Catalan composers who have gained recognition outside their home country. Critics have recognised Casablancas’ profound knowledge of musical tradition, especially that of the 20th century, which forms the basis of his personal style. In recent years, his compositions have shown great concern for the expressive capabilities of music – something we can clearly appreciate in this first performance of his third string quartet. The rest of the concert consists of works which are of capital importance in the quartet repertoire. Beethoven’s Grosse Fuge was composed in 1825 and was originally intended to be the last movement of his quartet Op. 130, while Bartók’s third quartet is based on the composer’s “micromelodies”, which look forward to the compositions of Ligeti. The concert ends with the quartet dedicated by Ravel in 1904 to his teacher, Fauré. All these works come to us in a performance by the Arditti Quartet, one of the most famous present-day chamber groups and well-known for their dedication to contemporary music.

*First performance. Commissioned by the  Obra Social, Caixa Catalunya.