Afternoon of Fauns: Springtime Glimmer

Aleksandr Glazunov: Prelude and fugue for string quartet from "Les vendredis" Recueil de pièces pour Quatuor d'archets, Cahier 1, N° 1
Riikka Marttila, violin, Lotta Laaksonen, violin, Anni Tiainen-Hammo, viola and Kalle-Pekka Koponen, cello

Peter Lieberson: Piano Quintet
Kati Tuominen-Heroja, violin, Heidi Kuula, violin, Heili Hannikainen, viola, Elina Rouvali, cello and Jouko Laivuori, piano

Ludwig van Beethoven: Sextet in E-flat Major, op. 81b
Aleksi Mäkimattila, horn, Laura Marttila, horn, Riikka Marttila, violin, Lotta Laaksonen, violin, Anni Tiainen-Hammo, viola and Kalle-Pekka Koponen, cello

Millionaire and chamber music enthusiast Mitrofan Belayev hosted Friday night concerts at his lavish St. Petersburg mansion with regular guests such as Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Alexander Borodin, and Alexander Glazunov. The composers often brought along new tunes to be performed by the Belayev Quartet, and Glazunov’s Prelude and Fugue were composed for these occasions.
Lieberson’s Piano Quintet from 2002 is a modern Romantic masterpiece that displays the influences of Brahms and Messiaen in its glimmering textures along with the composer’s modern touch.
Beethoven’s energetic and jubilant Sextet is like a miniature concerto for two horns and strings. Despite its opus number it is an early piece that features hints of the style Beethoven would later be famous for.

The concert is hosted by composer Minna Leinonen.