Aris String Quartet: Beethoven Quartets

BBC Radio 3 Lunchtime Concert

Boundless energy in Beethoven’s first published quartet, and the final, fantastical ‘Razumovsky’.

In the last of the ‘Razumovsky’ series marking the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s death, we come to the great C major No 3. Joseph Kerman once wrote that all of the Razumovsky quartets were ‘explorers’, and that the C major in particular seemed ‘ready to go off the cliff at any minute’. It ranges from lively to mysterious to ferocious throughout. While not including a Russian theme as such in this Quartet, there is a sparse melancholy to the extraordinary slow movement which seems to belong more to a Russian winter than a Viennese drawing room. Alongside is the sprightly, eclectic and thoroughly irresistible F major from the earlier Op 18.

The sensational Aris Quartet are steeped in Beethoven’s works in his anniversary year and recently recorded the ‘Razumovsky’ set in the Count’s former palace in Vienna. Their free, communicative style is perfect for these vibrant and startling works.

Programme: Ludwig van Beethoven · String Quartet No 1 in F major Op 18 No 1 · String Quartet No 9 in C major Op 59 No 3, ‘Razumovsky’ — Aris String Quartet