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| Divertimento String Quartet 'Cello: Vicky Evans Violin Linsay Braga Leader: Mary Eade Viola: Andrew Gillett |
At the end of this month we are giving four performances of our new string
quartet programme.
This is a most attractive programme which begins with Mozart’s String
Quartet ‘The Hoffmeister’, followed by Dmitri Shostakovich’s First String Quartet which is short and exciting with a lovely slow movement.
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| Bedřich Smetana |
The final quartet, by Bedřich Smetana, is nicknamed ‘From My Life’ (Z Mého Života):
"My intention was to paint a
tone picture of my life.
"The first movement depicts my youthful leanings
toward art, the Romantic atmosphere, the inexpressible yearning of something
I could neither express nor define, and also a kind of warning of my future
misfortune.
"A quasi-polka brings to mind the joyful days of youth when I
composed dance music and gave it away right and left to other young folk,
being known myself as a passionate lover of dancing.
"The third movement
reminds me of the happiness of my first love, the girl who later became my
first wife."
Smetana’s wife died during their exile in Sweden, which could
account for the pensive quality of this movement - could this be the
misfortune alluded to?
The fourth movement describes "The discovery that I
could treat national elements in music, and my joy in following this path
until it was checked by the catastrophe of the onset of my deafness, the
outlook into the sad future, the tiny rays of hope of recovery, but
remembering all the promise of my early career, a feeling of painful regret."
There is a point in this movement where the music abruptly breaks off,
followed by a low tremolo. Above this, the violin plays a long high piercing
note.
"The long insistent note in the finale owes its origin to this [his
deafness]. It is the fateful ringing in my ears of the high-pitched tones
which, in 1874, announced the beginning of my deafness. I permitted myself
this little joke because it was so disastrous to me."
Do you know any musical families that would like to bring their
children along? We have free tickets for the children and would love to encourage
their attendance at live concerts.
The April/May Quartet concerts are as follows:-
St Margaret’s Church Topsham
Sunday 24 April 4pm
DIVERTIMENTO STRING QUARTET
Mozart, Shostakovich and Smetana
Tickets: £12 (advance £10 U18 FREE)
The Topsham Bookshop: 01392-877895
St Edmund’s Church Kingsbridge
Friday 29 April 7.30pm
DIVERTIMENTO STRING QUARTET
Mozart, Shostakovich and Smetana
Tickets: £12
Divertimento: 01803 863677
Kingsbridge TIC: 01548 853195
Salcombe TIC: 01548 843927
Lustleigh Village Hall
Saturday 30 April 3pm
DIVERTIMENTO STRING QUARTET
Mozart, Shostakovich and Smetana
Tickets: £10
Available from Lustleigh Dairy
Will Carnell: 01647 277270
St John’s Church, Bridgetown, Totnes
Sunday 1 May 5pm
DIVERTIMENTO STRING QUARTET
Mozart, Shostakovich and Smetana
Tickets: £12
Divertimento:
01803 863677
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