Beethoven’s last six string quartets were long overlooked, considered excessively complex, even incoherent. Today they are regarded as masterpieces of a genius’s maturity. They are milestones in the history of music, synthesizing tradition and the avant-garde. In this concert, we can hear Op. 132, which, in addition to its overwhelming creativity, amazes us with moments of profound spiritual contemplation. The composition of this quartet was interrupted by a period of serious illness. Once recovered, he added to the four movements initially planned a piece he entitled “Sacred song of thanksgiving from a convalescent to the deity.” This is a facet of Beethoven that is worth getting to know better. This is followed by Shostakovich’s Op. 73, one of the few examples of the string quartet repertoire that stands alongside it. It dates from 1946 and was written immediately after the end of the Second World War. It is therefore impossible to dissociate it from the drama of that historical moment, as an evocation of one of the bloodiest chapters in human history. Yet it also conveys hope for the future, here and there “spiced” with the sarcasm ever-present in the Russian composer’s music.
Dois Mestres, Dois Tempos
Solistas da Metropolitana
L. v. Beethoven String Quartet No. 15
D. Shostakovich String Quartet No. 3
Ana Pereira, José Pereira violins
Joana Cipriano viola
Nuno Abreu cello
Free admission subject to capacity | M/6
All performances are accessible to people with reduced mobility.
More information at dmc.dac@cm-lisboa.pt / 218 170 900
