Borodin Quartet

Borodin Quartet Photo: CMNZ

The Borodin Quartet, founded originally in 1945 in Moscow, their history maps the history of the Soviet era and beyond. They were colleagues and friends of Shostakovich, they played at Stalin’s funeral. They rehearsed and premiered the Shostakovich quartets when the ink was barely dry on the page. Now, almost seventy years later, they come from a new generation, but have remained true to their roots and to the artistic excellence and integrity that has always been a hallmark of this astonishing ensemble.

Here, in New Zealand, the Borodin Quartet brought the composers for which they are renowned: a quintessentially Russian first half, followed by Beethoven’s monumental Op 130, symphonic in scale, the work that pushes to the very limits of expression and for many the greatest of his late quartets. The Myaskovsky is neoromantic, impassioned, stirring Russian writing at its best; and the Shostakovich remains one of his most personal and emotional works, ‘a crumbling, disintegrating memorial to lost happiness’, dedicated to the memory of one of his close friends. (Source: CMNZ)

Recorded live at the Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington by RNZ Concert