We’re celebrating the National String Quartet Foundation all this week on The Full Score. The Foundation creates and sponsors projects which bring live chamber music to audiences throughout Ireland. It is committed to supporting Irish and Irish-based musicians who wish to explore the string quartet repertoire and presents around eighty concerts each year given by a wide variety of string quartets, all of them with Irish connections.
The Banbha Quartet brings together four of Ireland’s finest musicians and is one of a new generation of string quartets nurtured by the National String Quartet Foundation. In today’s Full Score concert they present popular masterpieces by Beethoven and Schubert alongside a new work by Donegal fiddler turned renowned composer Seán Doherty. Inspired by the mix of Irish and Polish musicians in the Banbha Quartet, Sean’s latest string quartet celebrates the Mazurka, originally a Polish folk dance, made famous by Chopin’s piano works and also incorporated into the Donegal fiddle tradition.
Beethoven: String Quartet in F minor Op.95
Seán Doherty: Varsouviana – Variations on Shoe the Donkey
Schubert: String Quartet in D minor Death and the Maiden
Banbha Quartet
Lidia Jewloszewicz-Clarke, violin
Maria Ryan, violin
Séamus Hickey, viola
Aoife Burke, cello
RTÉ lyric fm, Wednesday 29th January, 1pm-4pm
