During the Sjostakovitsj Festival on Friday January 31, and Saturday February 1 and Sunday February 2, Quatuor Danel will perform all fifteen string quartets of this great Russian composer over three days. The Franco-Belgian quartet has been an ardent ambassador of the works for thirty years and has recorded the entire cycle several times. The integral performance is a feat reserved only for the very best performers. To that category belongs Quatuor Danel.

The quartets are played in chronological order, spread over seven concerts. Thus you not only get a wonderful insight into the development Shostakovich went through as a composer, but at the same time you leaf through an intimate musical diary of a man who lived for years under the yoke of Stalin. Nowhere did he process his feelings more deeply and poignantly than in his string quartets. You can hear deep sadness, fiery passion, but also silent protest and cynical venom.

On Friday, listen to how joyful Sjostakovitsj still sounds in his String Quartet No. 1. Do we hear here the love of a father for his newborn son Maxim? The String Quartet No. 3 is seen as a musical reflection of his experiences during World War II. On Saturday, the moving String Quartet No.7 will be heard, in which he reminisces about his wife Nina, who died in 1954. The String Quartet No. 8, perhaps the most famous work in the cycle, was written by Shostakovich after witnessing the ruins of the Allied bombing raids in Dresden. On Sunday afternoon, you will hear, among other works, String Quartet No. 11, a tribute to his late friend Ivan Sollertinsky. Sunday evening it is time for his swan song, the intense String Quartet No.15, after which Quatuor Danel closes with his Elegy and Polka.

Master classes, presentations and more!
An extensive context program will be organized during the Shostakovich Festival, including various master classes, presentations and, on Saturday and Sunday, a Talking Dinner with live music. You will read more about the exact details later on our website, in SPOT Magazine and in our newsletter. Don’t want to miss anything? Then buy a passe-partout for all the days!