Quatuor Ébène performs Mozart and Brahms

The French virtuoso ensemble first plays Mozart’s String Quartet No. 14, “Spring”. The first string quartet written by the composer in his adult years, it brims with melodic chromaticism and contrasting nuances. After a first movement full of momentum, we pass to a Menuetto with singular and surprising accents before arriving at a delicate third movement, Andante cantabile, the expressive center of the work. The concert continues with Brahms’s String Quartet No. 3 in B-Flat Major, reflecting a pastoral and joyous character. Brahms himself described the Agitato minuet as “the most tender and passionate” of his compositions.

Credits

Photo: Quatuor Ébène © Julien Mignot

Quatuor Ébène appears courtesy of Warner Classics.