Borodin Quartet – May 3, Pollack Hall

The Ladies’ Morning Musical Club presents

The Borodin Quartet

Ruben Aharonian – violin         Igor Naidin – viola
Sergey Lomovsky – violin         Vladimir Balshin – cello

The Borodin Quartet is unquestionably one of the most astounding phenomena in the world of classical music. It was founded nearly seventy years ago (1945), making it the world’s most long-lived ensemble of its kind. Two of its founding members were the famed violinist Rudolf Barshai and cellist Mstislav Rostropovich. The latter withdrew after only a few weeks, but his successor, Valentin Berlinsky, remained until 2007 – a remarkable 62 years and probably a record. The Borodin Quartet was one of the Soviet Union’s best-known classical music ensembles in the West during the Cold War era, through concert performances in the United States and Europe and through distribution of their recordings. Although the Quartet has seen many changes in personnel over its life span, all its members have been graduates of the Moscow Conservatory. Its interpretations are celebrated for their intensity and focus. The Borodin Quartet has produced a rich heritage of recordings over several decades, including the complete cycle of quartets by Shostakovich, with whom the group enjoyed a particularly close relationship. 3^rd LMMC appearance.

PROGRAMME:

SHOSTAKOVICH
String Quartet No. 4 in D major, Opus 83
Allegretto
Andantino
Allegretto
Allegretto

SHOSTAKOVICH
String Quartet No. 13 in B flat minor, Opus 138
Adagio – Doppio movimento – Tempo primo

BEETHOVEN
String Quartet in C flat minor, Opus 131
Adagio ma non troppo e molto expressivo –
Allegro molto vivace –
Allegro moderato –
Andante ma non troppo e molto cantabile –
Presto –
Adagio quasi un poco andante –
Allegro