Brahms & Contemporaries, Vol. 1 Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective

• Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897): Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 26:
• 1Brahms: Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 26: I. Allegro non troppo16:49
• 2Brahms: Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 26: II. Poco Adagio11:06
• 3Brahms: Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 26: III. Scherzo. Poco Allegro10:51
• 4Brahms: Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 26: IV. Finale. Allegro10:51
• Luise Adolpha Le Beau (1850 - 1927): Quartet in F Minor, Op. 28:
• 5Beau: Quartet in F Minor, Op. 28: I. Adagio – Allegro con fuoco06:56
• 6Beau: Quartet in F Minor, Op. 28: II. Adagio06:38
• 7Beau: Quartet in F Minor, Op. 28: III. Tempo di Mazurka03:34
• 8Beau: Quartet in F Minor, Op. 28: IV. Finale. Allegro05:58
• Total Runtime01:12:43

Info for Brahms & Contemporaries, Vol. 1

In this new series, the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective juxtaposes piano quartets by Brahms with ones by his lesser-known contemporaries. For this first volume the group has chosen the piano quartet of Luise Adolpha Le Beau. Born in 1850 in Rastatt, in Baden, she studied with Clara Schumann and Franz Lachner, as well as Josef Rheinberger. Her extensive output covers all genres: orchestral works, plenty of choral music, two operas, and an extensive number of Lieder, solo piano pieces, and chamber music. Her Piano Quartet was composed in 1884 and performed in the Leipzig Gewandhaus that year to great critical acclaim; indeed, Julius Riedel, who was responsible for concerts in that venue, told her that her success eclipsed any he had known there. On a concert tour to Vienna in the same year, she met Brahms and Hanslick; both invited her to show them her compositions, and responded positively. Brahms’s Piano Quartet No. 2 was completed in 1861, and is noted for the strong influence of Schubert. Lasting almost fifty minutes, it is one of the most substantial piano quartets in the repertoire.

Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective

Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective
is a flexible ensemble of wonderful, joyful, kind, passionate musicians who can’t wait to share chamber music with you.

Like many musicians, we spend a lot of time worrying about the world - about inequality, prejudice, violence, bullying, divisive rhetoric. Chamber music has an extraordinary power to bring people together: it unites musicians as equals, and draws listeners in to its intimate, transportive world.

We love to devise creative and innovative programmes, to curate multi-concert series and residencies, and to showcase great music both familiar and lesser-known. Our diverse and brilliant team hopes also to be able to inspire and educate audiences of all generations in the joys of chamber music, and ultimately to bring a bit of happiness and unity to our currently rather fractured-seeming world.

Booklet for Brahms & Contemporaries, Vol. 1