Sunday Concerts: I Rossetti Ensemble

Named after the British poet and Pre-Raphaelite artist, Dante Gabriel, the Rossetti Ensemble play pieces by the composers who derived inspiration from Rossetti's work, such as Debussy and Williams.

Mozart was among the first to explore the piano quartet, and this concert opens with his graceful E flat quartet. The evening continues with Bridge’s quartet, best summed up by his teacher, Britten: ‘Sonorous yet lucid, with clear, clean lines, grateful to listen to and to play. It is the music of a practical musician, brought up in German orthodoxy, but who loved French romanticism and conception of sound—Brahms happily tempered with Fauré.’ John Lenehan’s new arrangement of Debussy begins the second half, before Schumann’s quartet, composed in 1842, one of his most productive chamber music years.

Mozart | Piano Quartet No.2 in E-flat major K493
Bridge | Phantasy for Piano Quartet in F-sharp minor H.94
Debussy | Prelude from La Damoiselle élue (arr. John Lenehan) L.62
Schumann | Piano Quartet in E-flat major Op.47

Sara Trickey (violin)
Sarah-Jane Bradley (viola)
Tim Lowe (cello)
John Lenehan (piano)

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FREE Pre-Concert Talk, 5:30pm | Robert Hugill - "The Cinderella Effect: A History of the Piano Quartet"
Intended for amateurs but in fact far too difficult, Mozart’s first piano quartet effectively created a new genre, which remained in the shadow of its big brother, the piano quintet. Even Schumann’s piano quartet remained far less popular than his contemporaneous quintet.

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The Sunday Concerts trace their history back to 1878 when the People’s Concert Society was formed for the purpose of “increasing the popularity of good music by means of affordable concerts”. The South Place Ethical Society acquired the concert series and, in 1929, had Conway Hall purpose built for them and, with the exception of the war years, the concerts seasons have continued ever since.

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This event is in the Main Hall on the ground floor. For accessibility info: https://conwayhall.org.uk