A Basque banquet at the Festival Ravel

By Mark Valencia, 31 August 2023

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“as dramatically gripping as it was musically riveting”

Reviewed at Église Saint-Pierre, Saint-Pée-sur-Nivelle on 30 August 2023

Debussy, String Quartet in G minor, Op.10

Ysaÿe, Sonata for 2 Violins

Chausson, Concert in D major for violin, piano and string quartet, Op.21

Belcea Quartet

Vilde Frang, Violin

Bertrand Chamayou, Piano

A constellation of quartets end the East Neuk Festival

Simon Thompson, 29th June

Sixteen of the finest string players around join forces on one stage to end the East Neuk Festival in a grand finale.

****1

Echoes of Youth: the Belcea and Ébène Quartets at Carnegie Hall

Edward Sava-Segal, 14th November

A concert of Mendelssohn and Enescu octets which proves that eight can be more than four plus four.

****1

A game of numbers: Belcea Quartet and Quatuor Ébène play octets

Alexander Hall, 28th May

Sometimes you just marvel at the level of musical inspiration and the virtuosic quality of the playing. The two octets by Mendelssohn and Enescu make a very satisfying pairing.

****1

Beautiful Brahms from the Belcea Quartet at East Neuk

Simon Thompson, 29th June

Heavenly strings and Hellish piano from the Belcea Quartet and their celebrity guests in Crail as the 2023 East Neuk Festival begins.

****1

All passions spent: Chamayou and the Belcea Quartet

Chris Garlick, 13th April

Two larger than life piano quintets share star billing on an intense Wigmore Hall programme.

*****

World-class music making: the Belcea Quartet in Hamburg

Zoltán Szabó, 24th May

Issues with technical filming couldn't mar the artistry of a great set of musicians as they tackled Brahms' String Sextets.

****1

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Mark Valencia

Mark has worked in arts journalism for four decades, both as a writer and as a French-English translator. Nowadays he focuses his energies on reviewing opera and music. Mark also writes for Opera magazine and for Musical America as a correspondent for Europe and the UK.