Beethoven 4 Strings: Part III: Belcea Quartet

Beethoven found inspiration in a near-death experience…
In the spring of 1825, he fell seriously ill. When he recovered, he did what Beethoven always did – turned the experience into music. The slow movement of Quartet N° 15 is headed «Holy Song of Thanksgiving to the Deity, from a convalescent» and it’s every bit as personal as that sounds, building from almost nothing into something overwhelming. Paired with the earlier N° 6, whose final movement Beethoven titled «La Malinconia» (melancholy), this is a concert about what music can say when words aren’t enough.

The music: Ludwig van Beethoven: Streichquartett op. 18/6 · Streichquartett op. 132
The artists: Belcea Quartet; Corina Belcea (violin); Suyeon Kang (violin); Krzysztof Chorzelski (viola); Antoine Lederlin (cello)