Benjamin Grosvenor, Hyeyoon Park, Timothy Ridout and Kian Soltani toured Europe's major concert halls this month, performing some of the most complex works in the piano quartet repertoire, including Mahler Piano Quartet movement in A minor, Schumann Piano Quartet in E flat Op. 47, Strauss Piano Quartet in C minor Op. 13.
Performances took place at Auditorio Nacional de Música, Madrid, Schubertiade Festival, Sala della Societa Filarmonica Trento, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke, Gent, Concertgebouw, Amsterdam and Wigmore Hall, London.
Journalists praised the quartet's harmony and virtuosity:
“We could appreciate the good harmony that exists between the members of this quartet … Grosvenor knew how to excel in the Allegro ma non troppo and to stand as the undisputed leader in the Scherzo ... Soltani offered a honeyed opening solo with a velvety sweet timbre that became a honeyed duet with Park's input … Ridout stood out with a deeply emotional and romantic sound.”
- Codalario
Photo © Elvira Megías/CNDM "It was a concert with a lot of electricity. Grosvenor performed with virtuosity and strength, which was never gratuitous … Park is a virtuoso with great strength and great musicality … Ridout showed a supportive power that showed his great musicianship … Soltani is a cellist who makes the instrument sing and shout, as appropriate not only to the work, but to the group's approach… the concert was a joy, a resounding success."
- Scherzo
“Mahler's Quartet immediately highlights the harmony that binds the four musicians: the performance is intense and emotionally charged … in Schumann's Quartet in E flat major there is a brilliance, a virtuosity that also leaves room for musicality … the technical authority with which these moments of captivating fury are brought to life is dazzling … The presence of an excellent pianist like Grosvenor proves to be a significant resource in Strauss Quartet in C minor … A remarkable evening"
- L'Ape Musicale
Photo © Elvira Megías/CNDM
An excerpt from Strauss Piano Quartet in C minor Op. 13, recorded summer 2019
The four musicians joined together for the first time with Leon Bosch for a "luminous and thrilling” (The Guardian) performance of Schubert's Trout quintet, which opened the Southbank’s newly refurbished Queen Elizabeth Hall in 2018.
The quartet has since performed around the UK and at Queen Elizabeth Hall. Jessica Duchen proclaimed their February 2020 performance a triumph in her 5* Arts Desk review: "An ensemble of four rising stars brings the house down”.
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