Fitzwilliam String Quartet: Mozart, Beethoven, Shaw

This programme traces a fascinating arc from the formal ingenuity of the Classical style to the searching language of the present day. Mozart’s Quartet in G major, K.387, ‘The Spring’, is a work of extraordinary invention, in which contrapuntal mastery and harmonic audacity coexist with characteristic grace and wit. Caroline Shaw’s Plan and Elevation responds to the architecture and horticulture of Dumbarton Oaks, transforming the idea of a formal garden into an intricate musical landscape. Its shifting sonorities and rhythmic vitality offer a compelling contemporary counterpoint to Mozart. Beethoven’s Quartet in E-flat major, Op.74, ‘The Harp’, completes the programme with music of remarkable breadth and dramatic intensity. From its celebrated pizzicato textures to its expansive slow movement and exuberant finale, it demonstrates Beethoven’s restless reimagining of the quartet as a vehicle for profound musical expression. Programme Mozart: String Quartet in G K387, The Spring Caroline Shaw: Plan and Elevation Beethoven: String Quartet opus 74, The Harp