EUROPEAN MUSIC FESTIVAL

8 April 2014, Bulgaria Concert Hall, 19:30
With the kind assistance of Embassy of Spain
CASALS Quartet (Spain)
Vera MARTÍNEZ MEHNER, violin
Abel TOMÀS, violin
JONATHAN BROWN,viola
ARNAU TOMÀS, cello

PROGRAM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Streichquartett Nr. 19 C-Dur KV 465 ”Dissonanzenquartett”
György Ligeti: Streichquartett Nr. 1 ”Métamorphoses nocturnes”
Johannes Brahms: Streichquartett Nr. 1 c-moll op. 51 /1

“A quartet for the new millennium if I ever heard one” wrote Strad magazine upon hearing CUARTETO CASALS for the first time, shortly after its inception in 1997 at the Escuela Reina Sofía in Madrid.
Since winning First Prizes at the London and Brahms-Hamburg competitions, Cuarteto Casals has been a repeated guest at the world’s most prestigious concert halls including Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall, Musikverein Vienna, Philharmonie Cologne, Cité de la Musique Paris, Schubertiade in Schwarzenberg, Concertgebouw Amsterdam and the Philharmonie in Berlin, among many others throughout Europe, North America and Japan.
The quartet has compiled a substantial discography with the Harmonia Mundi label, including to date 9 CD’s, with repertoire ranging from lesser known Spanish composers Arriaga and Toldrá to Viennese classics Mozart, Haydn, Schubert and Brahms, through 20th Century greats Bartok, Kurtag and Ligeti. Following its critically acclaimed performances of Schubert’s fifteen string quartets last season, Cuarteto Casals will record the cycle live for DVD in at L’Auditori in Barcelona, where it is quartet in residence.
“A sonic signature entirely its own,” raved the New York Times, describing Cuarteto Casals’ distinctive range of expression. A prize from the prestigious Burletti-Buitoni Trust in London enabled the quartet to purchase a matching set of Classical period bows which it uses for works from Purcell through Schubert, refining its ability to distinguish between diverse musical styles. In addition, the quartet has been profoundly influenced by its work with living composers, especially György Kurtag, and has given the world premiere of quartets written by leading Spanish composers.