Press Releases
-
All material found in the Press Releases section is provided by parties entirely independent of Musical America and is not responsible for content.
Press Releases
World Premiere of Neglected Martinu Piano Quintet
January 23, 2012 | By rwam, inc.
The Graffe String Quartet joins pianist Michiko Otaki in the world-premiere performance of the previously unheard Piano Quintet No. 0, H. 35, by Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu. The concert is in Brno, Czech Republic, on Wednesday, April 18, 2012, is presented as a Chamber Music Evening under the auspices of the Brno Philharmonic in the orchestra’s main concert hall, Besední dum, at 7:30 pm. This cultural shrine was once the workplace of another renowned Czech composer, Leoš Janácek.
The two-movement Piano Quintet [Number Zero] was written in Martinu’s birthplace, the picturesque small town of Policka during the summer of 1911, and already showcases Martinu's signature parallel inverted triads, open fifths, and displaced accents . Martinu wrote two other published Piano Quintets, one in 1933 and the Second in 1944 while he was living in the USA. The Graffe’s 2007 recording of the 2nd Quintet with Michiko Otaki (along with Robert Schumann’s Quintet) was released by Radioservis in 2008 (CD: CR0385-2 - EAN 8590236038523).
Štepán Graffe, leader of the Graffe Quartet discovered that the manuscript of the early score was stored in the museum of the town Policka and after consulting the Bohuslav Martinu Institute in Prague determined that the piece had never been performed and was basically forgotten. But it was forgotten unjustly since the Graffe Quartet found that further research revealed the piece as a remarkable two-movement composition. It fully anticipates the masterworks of Martinu from his later years, yet is interesting not only from a historical perspective but also on its own, with alternating melancholic, light-hearted, and desolate moods.
Brno Radio engaged the Graffe Quartet to record and perform the work. The manuscript, however, required careful study and some minor correction and revision in order to produce a satisfactory performing edition. Their new CD, recorded in 2010, will be released later this year and also includes Vítezslav Novák's 1904 Piano Quintet and Smetana's Second String Quartet. (Novák was one of Dvorák's favorite students).
Of the youthful composition pianist Otaki said “I enjoyed the vitality of the first movement and the fascinating harmonic colors and modulations. The theme of the final section of the second movement is truly beautiful (exquisitely played by Štepán!). What could a 21 -year- old composer have been thinking? It almost sounds like a melody written by a mature composer towards the end of his difficult life.”
The Graffe’s all-Czech Brno concert also includes František Xaver Richter’s classical Divertimento in A and Milan Slimácek’s contemporary String Quartet No. 4. Their latest CD release of works by Haydn, Mendelssohn, and Suk was selected as “Recording of the Month” by MusicWeb International which raved: “The playing is amongst the most sheerly beautiful I have heard from any string quartet. ”
In 2008 the Graffe Quartet was awarded the Czech Chamber Music Society Prize, given at Dvorák Hall in Prague´s Rudolphinum, marking it as the premiere, most promising young ensemble from Central Europe. The ensemble was founded in 1997 at the Brno Conservatory. Members of the ensemble are Štepán Graffe and Lukáš Bednarík, violins, Lukáš Cybulski, viola, and Michal Hreno, violoncello. The Graffe had a most successful American debut tour in 2007 with pianist Michiko Otaki (including highly successful appearances in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Atlanta [Spivey Hall] and elsewhere), and returned to the U.S. in 2008 and again in 2011. The ensemble performs annually in the unique Punkva Caves at Macocha, the largest natural caves in middle Europe.
For info about the Graffe Quartet’s next American tour in February 2013, please contact: Raymond Weiss Artist Management (212-581-8478).
