The Takács Quartet plays Beethoven

Between 2002 and 2005 the Takács Quartet released a complete recorded cycle of Beethoven’s 16 string quartets that quickly became the benchmark collection. This profound experience with Beethoven’s works has clearly paid off: as put by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, “the Takács might play this repertoire better than any other quartet in the past or present”. Now in their 2016-2017 season, the ensemble returns once more to Beethoven’s string quartets, performing them in a complete 6-concert cycle, and accompanying these performances with the publication of first violinist Edward Dusinberre’s book Beethoven for a Later Age: The Journey of a String Quartet. This concert at Wigmore Hall belongs to the Beethoven cycle, and is paired with a masterclass featuring postgraduate student ensembles.

This Wigmore Hall concert features three out of Beethoven’s 16 String quartets: the quartets in G Major Op. 18 No. 2, F minor Op. 95, ”Serioso”, and B-flat major Op. 130. The pieces of the series stem from the composer's three compositional periods: the "early", the "middle" and the "late". Listeners will not fail to be struck by the astonishing range of Beethoven’s stylistic development.

Do not miss this red letter date with the Takács Quartet "at the peak of its powers–at the peak of its profession." (Boston Globe)

Photo: From left to right, Károly Schranz, András Fejér, Geraldine Walther, and Edward Dusinberre – © Keith Saunders