Thursday 11 April

The weather seemed to have turned just in time to welcome the newly named Royal Greenwich String Quartet Festival, which must boast some of the finest venues in the Capital. Coming out of the Old Royal Naval College Chapel on Thursday evening the air was mild, the building delicately floodlit and across the river Canary Wharf twinkled delightfully. It was the sort of magic we have been waiting for across a long hard winter.

The day was centred on a Chamber Music Bonanza – a cluster of sessions for student musicians, working with lead professionals and the Carducci Quartet, culminating in an afternoon concert in St Alfege’s Church. The opening Brahms’ Violin Sonata had a little difficulty with balance, the piano being rather overpowering, but it ended well. Two movements from Haydn quartets showed strong rapport from a quartet of students who appeared to have come together relatively recently. They also showed a good understanding of Haydn’s humour.

The Pierrot Trio played the first movement of Beethoven’s Eb Trio Op1 No1, with excellent balance, and a fine performance of the Andante from Shostakovich’ Piano Trio No2 Op67. The muted cello at the opening was very impressive, and the transitions within the movement were well controlled.

The Vilaseca Quartet brought the most challenging music of the afternoon with three works by Britten. The opening Alla Marcia sounded distinctly uncomfortable, as if a pacifist had been forced to write a military march, and all the more convincing for the tension created. The Rhapsody for String Quartet is equally challenging in the near ferocity of the writing, which the quartet handled with surprising ease. The Three Divertimenti concluded the afternoon, with a whimsical Waltz lingering in the memory.

In the evening we moved into the Old Royal Naval College Chapel for a concert given by the Arcadia Quartet, who opened with Wolf’s Italian Serenade. The acoustic in the chapel favours the bass registers making the cello and viola parts sing with particular ease. The Wolf has just enough tension to warn us of what is to come without making us uneasy. Janacek’s Second Quartet Intimate Letters brought a richness and intensity throughout, but allowed the playful moments to spin into the air without difficulty. The emotional tension of the Adagio was very well created and the Moderato brought an unexpected sense of hope where many players can only sense despair. The final Allegro returned us to the world of Janacek’s Vixen, and a sense of continuing hope.

The bleak, almost suicidal, loneliness of the opening of Beethoven’s Op131 was painfully impressive. If there was a hint of heroism in its ability to face the awful truth it was deeply hidden. The following Allegro did little to break the spell of the opening and it was not until the unfolding variations of the fourth movement that any sense of peace began to ensue. After this the Presto bounced almost playfully and the following Adagio seemed less desolate that the opening had been. Perhaps there was hope after all? The final movement did not agree. The aggression was there but also a darkness at its heart, failing to throw off the bleakness of the opening which had remained throughout. This was a totally convincing reading of what for me is Beethoven’s finest quartet. BH

The Festival continues on Friday and Saturday. www.trinitylaban.ac.uk