Wigmore Hall Recital
On the basis of a handful of his better-known works, the Polish composer Karol Szymanowski is sometimes dismissed as a hedonist, more concerned with surface beauty floating on an ocean of lush harmony than with strong ideas rigorously developed. But this programme, built around his two string quartets with some of his violin and piano works in between, confirmed a far wider, and more impressive range of skills.

Neither quartet is a standard repertory piece, though the Belcea Quartet played them as if they were in their blood as well as their fingers.

The first, dating from 1917, already demonstrates an ability to produce a wide variety of original textures for the medium, as well as to write music as cogent as it is passionate. The second, written in 1927 when Szymanowski was rediscovering his own national roots under the impact of Bartok, is an even more extraordinary synthesis of folk-inspired elements into a complex organic structure. It is surely one of the 20th century's great quartets.

At least that is how it came over in this technically superb, emotionally no-holds-barred performance. Each phrase was delivered with forthright attack, and the music's constantly changing character was unerringly captured even as it shifted.

Wigmore Hall, London
The Belcea Quartet began this interesting programme with Mendelssohn’s E minor Quartet...and played it with poise and appreciative delicacy.
David Murray, The Financial Times, 5 November 2004

Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool
Much of the attraction, maybe, was the fact that the extraordinary Belcea String Quartet was making its first visit to Liverpool. They’ve been the resident quartet at the Wigmore Hall in London since 2001 and have made a considerable impact both in concert - they’ve toured the UK and Europe extensively, appearing at major venues and in festivals - and their initial recordings.

Its not hard to hear why. The three works they included in their Liverpool recital shed fesh light on three fairly familiar works.

They opened with Haydn’s E-flat major String Quartet...There was massive vitality in their opening movement with a quite terrific purity of tone and ease of expression. The andante again sounded cohesive and fluent with a splendidly tense pianissimo section. A sophisticated minuet led to another vivacious dash in the finale.

Mendelssohn’s E minor String Quartet... is an altogether more dour work. It was a shapely performance with a development section which felt tragic and pleading. Another highly lively burst followed in the scherzo while there were some beautiful cello solo lines in the andante.

They closed the recital with a solid performance of Beethoven’s challenging A minor Quartet...The first movement always feels hard to assimilate, but this performance felt far more unified. A touching adagio and highly thoughtful finale closed what proved an excellent prelude to...a new Rodewald season.
Glyn Mon Hughes, Liverpool Daily Post, 14 September 2004