The Eschers explores Eastern European repertory at Lincoln Center

By Edward Sava-Segal, 04 April 2022

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“a truly distinguished rendition”

Reviewed at Lincoln Center: Alice Tully Hall, New York City on 3 April 2022

Dvořák, String Quartet no. 10 in E flat major "Slavonic", Op.51

Bartók, String Quartet no. 3, Sz. 85

Tchaikovsky, String Quartet no. 3 in E flat minor, Op.30

Mendelssohn, String Quartet no. 5 in E flat major, Op.44 no. 3 (Scherzo)

Escher String Quartet

The Escher Quartet in the bucolic Catskill Mountains

Edward Sava-Segal, 2nd July

For their performance in the barn-like structure, the Eschers proposed several remakable pieces not standardly performed.

****1

Zemlinsky: from dying Romantic era to birth of modernity

Jacob Slattery, 29th October

Much like Mahler’s Ninth Symphony, Zemlinsky’s string quartets signifies the death of the Romantic world while laying the groundwork for the 20th century, but in contrast to Mahler’s cry of distress, Zemlinsky indulged in the new and eagerly descended into the future.

****1

Proms Chamber Music 6: Hugh Wood and Claude Debussy

Ninfea Cruttwell-Reade, 20th August

This year the Proms Chamber Music Series returns to the bright and spacious environment of Cadogan Hall to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Claude Debussy’s birth. At the sixth concert in the series an inspired programme given by BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists, the Escher Quartet, paired two works exactly one hundred years apart in their composition: String Quartet No. 4, Op.

****1

Three Pieces from 1918 at the Cheltenham Music Festival

Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres, 13th July

Red, white and blue bunting, with matching lighting, adorned the balconies of Cheltenham Town Hall, setting a patriotic scene for a concert of music from the year that World War I ended. Television presenter Julia Somerville opened the evening sat at a vintage newsdesk with her own careful research, for which she can be highly commended.

****1

Back to 1915: Kraggerud, Isserlis and more at the Cheltenham Music Festival

Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres, 11th July

The concert opened with BBC newsreader Julia Somerville, summarising news from the year 1915 at an old-fashioned broadcasting desk complete with microphone. It was informative, and set the scene for this recital, one in a series of ‘time capsule’ concerts, solely featuring music composed in 1915 – including two of Debussy’s last chamber pieces.

****1

Dazzling Prokofiev from Alim Beisembayev and the RLPO

Peter Connors, 26th April

In an all-Russian programme in Liverpool, Alim Beisembayev gives a breathtaking performance of Prokofiev's fiendishly difficult Second Piano Concerto.

****1

More reviews...

Edward Sava-Segal

Edward has been living in New York for the last 25 years, one of the reasons being the extraordinarily rich cultural life in this city. He has studied piano and classical music in his early years. He switched later on to computer science and data architecture but he kept an unwavering interest in following the classical music phenomenon here in New York and in his travels. Edward occasionally reviews fine arts events for the most prestigious literary magazine in Romania, his home country.

Escher String Quartet explores Eastern European repertory at Lincoln Center