Shostakovich’s Eighth String Quartet in C minor is one of the composers most personal works. There are striking allusions to Wagner’s »Götterdämmerung« and Tchaikovsky’s confessional symphony »Pathétique«. But Shostakovich also immortalised himself, with themes from earlier works as well as the musical code D-Es-C-H. The piece was composed in 1960 during a visit to Dresden, which was destroyed in 1945.

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NDR Chamber Music Concert / Elphier-Quartett

Elbphilharmonie Hamburg

This season’s Czech Chamber Music Society curator Petr Popelka dons another of his many musical hats for this programme: playing the double bass, the instrument with which he began his career. For his final curated concert this year, he joins the Elphier Quartett for Dvořák’s String Quintet No. 2. The rest of the programme is devoted to newer music including a work by Astor Piazzolla, the legendary king of tango.

Elphier Quartet

Jun 10, 2025

NDR Chamber Music Concert / Elphier-Quartett

Feb 26, 2025

Czech Chamber Music Society • Elphier Quartett & Petr Popelka

Elphier Quartet