Published Reviews
Charles Dobson, “Review: Recentering on Elizabeth Maconchy”, Craven Herald & Pioneer, 1st March 2023, https://www.cravenherald.co.uk/news/23355485.review-recentering-elizabeth-maconchy-charles-dobson/
Skipton Music’s season focusing on the work of women composers continued with an imaginative and vibrant concert given by the Bloomsbury Quartet and “recentering” on the British composer Elizabeth Maconchy.
As well as quartets from contrasting periods of her lifetime, we heard works by Vaughan Williams and Janacek, two of the major influences on her style, and by her daughter Nicola Lefanu.
The concert was complemented by a display with photos and further information about her life and work.
It has to be said that this was not an evening of easy listening! – even the Vaughan Williams quartet, written during the second world war, is a sombre and at times harshly dissonant piece. But the Bloomsbury quartet proved inspiring and compelling advocates for this largely unfamiliar music.
The Maconchy first quartet and the Janacek quartet were electric with energy, while the more meditative interludes in the Nicola Lefanu and the later Maconchy quartet were played with great delicacy and lovely sonorities, and the epilogue of the Vaughan Williams was treated with the warmth and fulness of sound that we would expect from this master of string writing.
This concert was “recentered” in another sense: the quartet opted to play at ground level in the middle of the audience, between the front seats and the raked seating.
As well as giving a much more intimate feel – as if we were privileged friends sitting in on four people playing for their own pleasure – it was a joy to see, as well as hear, the empathy between the players. Let’s hope that other ensembles who come to Skipton will follow suit!
Paul Conway, “Bloomsbury Quartet - Huddersfield Parish Church”,
Musical Opinion (Issue 1531, April - June 2022):
As part of the Huddersfield Music Society’s 103rd season, the Bloomsbury Quartet gave an evening recital in Huddersfield Parish Church on 14 February 2022, which offered a satisfyingly varied selection of works, all dating from the first half of the twentieth century.
Stravinsky’s Three Pieces (1914, revised 1918) made a quirky and challenging opening item. These tiny, fragmentary studies require each player to perform as a string soloist, flouting conventional notions of the quartet as a medium primarily for dialogue and interplay. The performers relished the central piece’s rhythmic idiosyncrasies and captured the folk and devotional elements of the first and third pieces, respectively.
A complete contrast in style followed with a taut and bracing performance of Britten’s expansive and rigorously argued String Quartet no.2 in C major, Op.36 (1945). The protean, mercurial opening movement unfolded grippingly, followed by a terse central scherzo, bristling with tightly controlled nervous energy. The ‘Chacony’ finale was particularly memorable, the players relishing their solo cadenzas and showing a keen sense of the music’s structure as they steered inexorably through the contrasting variations towards the imposing, final C major chords.
After the interval came a rare chance to hear the String Quartet of 1932 by the Dutch composer Rosy Wertheim (1888-1949). The Bloomsburys’ leader, Eva de Vries, explained to the audience that she studied Wertheim’s music as part of her postgraduate research and wanted very much to include this piece in the recital. Propelled by its busy, contrapuntal lines, the opening Allegro con moto set out the distinctive material which fuelled the rest of the work. The central Intermezzo displayed an engaging lyricism, not least in the soaring first violin part, rendered eloquently, and with emotional commitment by Eva de Vries. The vigorous, brief finale rounded off the work in fine style, aided by the Bloomsbury Quartet’s vibrant playing.
The concert concluded with an elegant account of Ravel’s String Quartet in F major (1903) in which dynamic shading was scrupulously observed throughout. The performers were intensely expressive in the measured third movement and playful in the high-spirited passages of the second and fourth movements.
With a persuasive combination of delicacy and self-assurance, the Bloomsbury Quartet offered an energetic and richly rewarding recital in which their technical and interpretative skills were placed entirely at the service of the music. The inclusion of Rosy Wertheim’s piece added extra distinction to a finely balanced, carefully considered programme.
Paul Conway, “Recitals by the Villiers Quartet and the Bloomsbury Quartet”,
Musical Opinion (Issue 1525, Oct - Dec 2020):
Also notable for its enterprising and carefully chosen repertoire was the Bloomsbury Quartet’s recital on January 9… The players caught the nervous energy of the urgent and pervasive main theme of the opening Allegro feroce [of Maconchy’s Quartet No. 1]…The Bloomsburys savoured the capricious fun of this closing Presto, presenting its droll payoff with insouciant aplomb.
Rachel Maxey brought an expressve intensity to the important theme [of the Vaughan Williams]…The following Romance seemed to emerge from some distant, archaic region with vibrato-less, viol-like counterpoint, blossomed in an extended episode…the gently songful Epilogue was beautifully realised.
The Bloomsbury Quartet gave a polished and sensitive reading [of LeFanu’s Quartet No. 2] which rightly emphasised the considerable warmth and emotional depth underlying the score’s kaleidoscopic virtuosity.
The players impressed with their strong sense of structure [in Maconchy’s Quartet No.11], while at the same time finding an almost improvisatory freedom in the score’s rapid changes of mood. The calm stillness of the concluding bars was hard-earned and brought the Bloomsbury Quartet’s adventurously scheduled and stylishly played afternoon recital to an immensely satisfying conclusion.
Leicester Concert-Goer Diary, 12 January 2020,
https://leicesterconcertgoerdiary.wordpress.com/2020/01/12/lunchtime-series-bloomsbury-quartet-9th-january-2020/ :
...a quartet relatively new on the block to fly into Leicester and make their mark. And it was some mark!
The Bloomsbury Quartet has clearly a wish to shake up both repertoire and the way that repertoire is presented to an audience.
The richness and the drama of the playing was often truly memorable... What could be said with little doubt was that this was a quartet which was well on the way to being of the front rank, such was the finesse and fervour of the playing.
Dr Chang Tou Liang, “TWO GLORIOUS DAYS AT THE PETWORTH FESTIVAL / Part I”, July 2018,
http://pianofortephilia.blogspot.com/2018/08/two-glorious-days-at-petworth-festival.html :
Four young ladies in bright crimson gowns could not have given a more serious programme of music, something that would quite at home at Wigmore Hall itself. Beginning with Beethoven’s Quartet in F major (Op.95), nicknamed “Serioso”, that set the tone for the rest of the hour-long concert. They produced a robust tone and exhibited an immaculate togetherness. This was Beethoven with passion, oozing from every muscle and sinew. Then it switched to Stravinsky’s Three Pieces, alternating rhythmic vigour with strident discords, modernism without apology and a refreshing palate-cleanser from conventional Beethoven.
My first live encounter with Benjamin Britten’s Second String Quartet was an illuminating experience. Whoever thought that the master of dissonance and grit himself could accomodate his idiom to yield music that felt vulnerable and so touchingly human? First on the to do list: listen it on recording again. My last encounter with Britten’s quartets dated to the late 1980s: Quartet No.3 with the Chiligirian Quartet at Victoria Concert Hall, an unforgettable performance. This one came pretty close.
The quartet’s second violinist… turned out to be Singapore’s Janell Yeo, some ten years after winning the $200K HSBC Youth Excellence Award. I had written about her in these pages ages ago and had wondered what happened with her… Janell has since graduated from the Royal Academy of Music (the quartet was formed by its alumni) and gone on to philanthropic work alongside a busy music career. Giving back to society is something to be truly proud about.
Festival Directors &
Concert Organisers
“Thank you for such a superb contribution to the festival. Your playing was magnificently assured and stylish - as was your presentation. Your response to my request for a programme that shone an individual light on our 1918/2018 theme was considered and highly appropriate, not to mention appreciated!”
- Stewart Collins, Artistic Director, Petworth Festival
“I’m really excited by the Bloomsbury Quartet and am convinced that they will soon become a name on the classical music circuit. They are forward-thinking with big ideas but also when they play, you get a real sense that they are on a mission to share their love of music with their audiences. Truly a group to watch out for.”
- Clare Norburn, Artistic Director, Stroud Green Festival
"The Bloomsbury Quartet were recommended to me by the Stroud Green Festival, having won a competition to become one of their associated artists. They played a fantastic recital for my series, an intense programme of Beethoven, Schubert and Britten. Their tempi suited the acoustics beautifully, and their musicality kept my attention throughout.
As an organiser I found them a pleasure to work with… I will be asking them back again when the opportunity arises!"
- Daniel Collins, Organiser & Artistic Director, MusicFor Concert Series
Composers
Daniel Fardon (2018/19 Rosie Johnson RPS Wigmore Hall Apprentice Composer) discussing his first composition for the Bloomsburys, entitled Three Garden Sketches for String Trio (Feb 2019):
“…experience the Bloomsbury’s alluring sound… I instantly felt I had a genuine creative connection with the quartet, who are already such sensitive and responsive musicians despite being a relatively new group.
During the recording session with the Bloomsburys, I noticed their acute ability to shift effortlessly between discrete stylistic temperaments with a pervading fresh and adventurous attitude.“
As announced live on BBC Radio 3 on 1 December 2020, Fardon’s Six Movements for String Quartet is the winner of the “Small Chamber” 2020 Ivor Novello Composer Award. This string quartet was premiered at Wigmore Hall by the Bloomsbury Quartet on 17 July 2019.
Audience Members
“Last night’s concert was fantastic - the Quartet performed superbly! The music was not familiar to me, but it seemed very challenging… The arrangement of the seating gave us all a good view of each player, and the fact that they themselves rotated made it even better. The whole performance was enriched by the Abbey's echo, providing a great ambience. Well done everybody!” - C. G.
“Many congratulations on your performance in the Wigmore Hall. It was a great programme and really expertly played! I was completely captivated from start to finish!” - J. H.
“Fabulous musical interpretation, great presentation, thank you, loved your performance” - M. M.
“Thank you again for playing so beautifully last week - your superlative playing helped create a wonderful atmosphere for our reception”
- Andrew Patrick, British Ambassador to Burma 2013-18