Reporter: Dr Joe Dawson
Date online: 12/06/2008

The string quartet is a medium beloved of most major composers. It requires individual skills as well as a cohesive approach to a work. The Karol Szymanowski Quartet, named after the Polish composer, had both of these qualities in abundance.

Marek Dumicz and Grzegorz Kotow violins, Vladimir Mykitka viola and Marcin Sieniawski cello, banded together as a quartet in Warsaw in 1995 and have grown to become one of the most dynamic quartets of their generation having been adopted by the BBC.

Mozart’s String Quartet in F major K590 was a blazing affair where members established themselves and pulled together as a team. The String Quartet Opus 56 No 2 by the composer from which they take their name was full of the language of nationalism and impressionism, a kind of Polish counterpart to Bartok.

The final work of the evening, Haydn’s String Quartet in B flat major Opus 76 No 4 nicknamed ‘The Sunrise’ certainly was a bright dawning for this promising young quartet. It was like having one of the major European festival events here in Rochdale.

This concert was sponsored by Diane Bailey Associates, a crucial factor in the survival of the society that works tirelessly to promote classical music in the borough.

The Karol Szymanowski Quartet
Gracie Fields Theatre, Rochdale
19 February 2005