John F. Allen's Blog at jfallen.org

Four concerts from September 2023 to March 2024.

On an afternoon in autumn 2023 I was parked in Foyle’s bookshop while Carol and Sophie went shopping in Covent Garden. At a slightly loose end, I looked through the CDs on display, curious to see if there are recordings of string quartets played on original instruments. I’d long read about the influence of Haydn, but never been impressed by what I’d heard. That changed completely when I listened to the recording of Haydn’s Opus 33 quartets by The London Haydn Quartet. Really Impressive. Carol searched on-line and found this quartet listed for a programme of recitals at somewhere called The Art Workers’ Guild in Queen Square. The first concert was a delight. We attended all four.

What distinguished The London Haydn Quartet was their vitality and evident rapport with each other. They were listening, and enjoying each other’s playing. Plus their faultless intonation and elegant phrasing, obviously the result of shared agreement in what must have been meticulous preparation and rehearsal.