Pure emotion: Tchaikovsky’s String Quartet No. 1 is full of temperament and passion – as demonstrated by the Julia Fischer Quartet at the Rheingau Music Festival 2022. It was a powerful and virtuosic interpretation.

The String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11 is the first of three string quartets written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893). It was premiered in March 1871 at the Moscow Conservatory as part of a chamber music recital with other works by Tchaikovsky. The Russian composer, largely unknown at the time, had written the String Quartet in D Major specifically for the occasion. Even before the event, Tchaikovsky is said to have feared that he would not be able to present enough good works. However, this fear was unfounded. The concert with the String Quartet No. 1 delighted the audience. The famous Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, who was present, is said to have even been moved to tears by the second movement, the “Andante cantabile”, for which Tchaikovsky used a motif from a Ukrainian folk song.

(00:00) I. Moderato e semplice
(11:45) II. Andante cantabile
(18:43) III. Scherzo. Allegro non tanto e con fuoco – Trio
(23:02) IV. Finale. Allegro giusto – Allegro vivace

Julia Fischer Quartet:
Julia Fischer | VIOLIN
Alexander Sitkovetsky | VIOLIN
Nils Mönkemeyer | VIOLA
Benjamin Nyffenegger | CELLO

Julia Fischer was born in Munich in 1983 to German-Slovakian parents. She received her first tuition on the violin at the age of three. A short time later her mother, the pianist Viera Fischer, introduced her daughter to the piano. At the age of nine, Julia Fischer began studying with renowned violin professor Ana Chumachenco at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Munich. She succeeded Chumachenco in 2011, thereby coming full circle.
Fischer began touring internationally at the age of 15. She performed with the world’s greatest orchestras, recorded numerous albums and won prestigious prizes including the Gramophone Classical Music Award and the BBC Music Magazine Award. But solo performances with ensembles weren’t enough. Fischer is also a brilliant chamber musician. Together with violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky, violist Nils Mönkemeyer and cellist Benjamin Nyffenegger, she founded the Julia Fischer Quartet in 2012. Fischer plays a violin by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini (1742) as well as a new one by Philipp Augustin (2018).

© Deutsche Welle 2022

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