Kelemen Quartet brings Hungarian fire to Auckland

By Simon Holden, 20 March 2014

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Reviewed at Auckland Town Hall: Great Hall, Auckland on 19 March 2014

Mozart, String Quartet no. 19 in C major "Dissonance", K465

Kodály, Serenade for two violins and viola, Op.12

Haydn, String Quartet no. 27 in D major, Op.20 no.4, Hob III:34

Bartók, String Quartet no. 4 in C major, Sz.91

Beethoven, String Quartet no. 9 in C major, "Razumovsky", Op.59 no.3 (Final movement only)

Kelemen Quartet

Newly-minted Festival Academy Budapest

Alexandra Ivanoff, 24th July

Playing repeatedly in my mind as I walked home on 24 July was the spine-chilling orchestral performance of the "Dance of the Knights" from Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet in the Franz Liszt Academy’s superb Solti Hall.

***11

Beethoven, Schubert und eine Gänsemutter an der Festival Academy Budapest

Rolf Kyburz, 11th June

Das Kelemen-Quartett überzeugte mit leichter Artikulation, einem weichen Ton und ausgezeichneter, sprechender Agogik und Dynamik, perfekter Koordination. Es agierte aus einem Geist, mit einer Seele.

****1

Requiem to a troubled genius at the Southbank’s Multitudes

Chris Garlick, 29th April

As part of the Southbank Centre's Multitudes festival, Unnatural Harmony: Sounds of Lee Alexander McQueen offers a multimedia tribute to the life and creative vision of the iconic British fashion designer.

****1

Saariaho’s Notes on Light receives its Berlin premiere

Elena Luporini, 29th April

Sakari Oramo and Annsi Karttunen bring Northern lights and folklore to the Philharmonie, closing on a touch of Czech optimism with Dvořák’s Eighth Symphony.

***11

Steve Reich at 90 celebrated in Liverpool

Pwyll ap Sion, 29th April

A compelling concert at Liverpool’s Tung Auditorium offers a striking Josephine Stephenson’s UK premiere, dazzling John Adams and Steve Reich’s mesmerising Reich/Richter.

*****

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

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Simon Holden

Simon is an operaphile based in Auckland, New Zealand. He wrote his dissertation on Japanese popular music. With a background in piano and classical music retail, he spends his time attending as much opera or vocal concert as he can and blogs at irishenceaway.blogspot.com.