Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Quartet No 2 | 20131122 | Andrew McGregor presents the first of three concerts featuring the Britten String Quartets paired with chamber music by composers Britten admired. Recorded earlier today in the Britten Studio in Snape Maltings with the acclaimed Benyounes Quartet, winners of the Sandor Vegh String Quartet Competition in Budapest last year. They perform Britten's second Quartet and Purcell Fantasias, with the second Cello Suite, played by Philip Higham. Philip Higham, cello Purcell: Fantasias (selection) Britten: Suite No 2 for Cello, Op 80 Britten: String Quartet No 2, Op 36. Benyounes Quartet in Purcell: Fantasias. Britten: String Quartet No 2; Cello Suite No 2. Programmes featuring music and discussion to mark the centenary of Benjamin Britten. |
| 02 | Quartet No 3 | 20131123 | Andrew McGregor presents the second of three concerts pairing the Britten Quartets with chamber music by composers Britten loved and admired. Recorded this evening at Snape Maltings Concert Hall, the Kuss Quartet play the extraordinary final string quartets of Schubert and Britten. Schubert: String Quartet in G major, D 887 Britten: String Quartet No 3, Op 94 Britten's 3 Divertimenti, String Quartet No 1 and Shostakovich Piano Quintet, live tomorrow at 11.00 am. The Kuss Quartet in Schubert: String Quartet in G, D887. Britten: String Quartet No 3. Programmes featuring music and discussion to mark the centenary of Benjamin Britten. |
| 03 | Quartet No 1 | 20131124 | The final concert pairing the Britten Quartets with chamber music by composers he admired features works from the 1930s and 40s: Britten's 3 Divertimenti and Quartet No. 1 and Shostakovich's Piano Quintet. Presented live from Snape Maltings Concert Hall by Andrew McGregor. In the interval, at about 11.40am, Suzy Klein talks composer Colin Matthews. Britten: Three Divertimenti Britten: String Quartet No 1 in D major, Op 25 Shostakovich: Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op 57 Ensemble 360 Benjamin Nabarro, violin Claudia Ajmone-Marsan, violin Krzysztof Chorzelski, viola Gemma Rosefield, cello Tim Horton, piano. Members of Ensemble 360 perform Britten's String Quartet No 1, plus a work by Shostakovich Programmes featuring music and discussion to mark the centenary of Benjamin Britten. |