Quartz: Schubert’s Death & the Maiden

Quartz returns to perform one of the greatest chamber works of all time.

The fifth movement of Australian composer Richard Meale’s String Quartet No.2 has long had a life of its own. Dedicated to the recent loss of a dear friend, Meale’s Cantilena Pacifica achieved stand-alone fame for its lyrical violin stretching mournfully over a gentle accompaniment.

Named after, and taking inspiration from, a song he had written many years earlier, Schubert’s Death and the Maiden – a meditation on the fragility of mortality – is one of the composer’s most acclaimed works.

Written at a time when Schubert himself was unwell, Death and the Maiden tells the story of a woman pleading with Death to spare her. Pulsing with intense emotion and drama, the stormy passages and gentle melodies throughout remain proof of Schubert’s brilliant lyricism and provide an unforgettable listening experience

Quartz
Kathryn Taylor violin
Emily Beauchamp violin
Merewyn Bramble viola
Zoe Wallace cello

Richard Meale String Quartet No.2; V. Cantilena Pacifica

Franz Schubert String Quartet No.14 in D minor, D 810,  Death and the Maiden