Haydn: The Seven Last Words of Christ, Op 51
A string quartet like no other, Seven Last Words is a sequence of meditations on the seven sentences uttered by Christ from the cross, framed by an intense introduction and an explosive coda. It began life as a commission from a Jesuit priest for an orchestral work to be performed in the Good Friday service at an underground church in the city of Cádiz. That commission led Haydn into some of the most reflective and deeply emotional music he ever wrote, and his version for string quartet has a heightened sense of intimacy and reverence.
To perform this timeless work especially for our Holy Week Festival, we have assembled a hand-picked team of elite chamber musicians:
Jamie Campbell, Violin I
Alessandro Ruisi, Violin II
Jane Atkins, Viola
Nathaniel Boyd, Cello
They begin their residency earlier in the week with a performance of Beethoven's Opus 130- at 1pm on Wednesday 5th April 2023.
The performance lasts approximately 70 minutes.
"The seven Sonatas take us deep into a meditative space ... As the music unfolds, wrenching anguish and lament combine with a sense of serene majesty and transcendence. We hear a tender and reverent conversation between instrumental voices. At moments, the music becomes strange and dissonant in a way which anticipates Beethoven’s Late String Quartets. The final movement’s thundering “earthquake” pulls us out of the meditative, spiritual realm and returns us to the physical world."
Timothy Judd, The Listeners' Club