Masterclass: Young string quartet stars at the Beethoven-Haus

The renowned Belcea Quartet will be working on string quartets by Beethoven with four selected young ensembles in the International Beethoven Masterclass from 12 to 15 September. The course is open to the public. Final concert on 15 September

The Beethoven-Haus has regularly organised the International Beethoven Masterclasses every year since 2010. The courses are one of the Bonn cultural institution's central instruments for promoting outstanding young musicians. This year, the masterclass, which takes place from 12 to 15 September, will focus on Beethoven's string quartet works for the second time since 2011. The instructors are the members of the Belcea Quartet, which is currently one of the top international ensembles and accomplished Beethoven interpreters. The Belceas have selected four promising young groups from numerous applications in response to an international call for applications for the masterclass, with whom they will work intensively on Beethoven's string quartet works. As in previous years, the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media has provided funding for the masterclass. 

The four young string quartets taking part in the masterclass are the Kandinsky Quartet from Austria, the Velvet Quartet based in Germany, the Cuarteto Ibéria from Spain and the British Kyan Quartet. All of the ensembles already have an impressive artistic CV and relevant performance experience. During the four days of the course, they will now be able to hone their Beethoven interpretations with the Belceas.

The practical courses at the Beethoven House are always combined with a study of sources, supervised by the academic staff of the Beethoven Archive. In addition to Beethoven's birthplace and the modern chamber music hall, the Beethoven-Haus in Bonn also houses the world's largest Beethoven collection and the Beethoven Archive academic research centre. This enables a particularly intensive examination of Beethoven at the authentic location. By engaging with the sources of Beethoven's works, the participants receive valuable inspiration. 

Most of the lessons are open to the public so that interested laypeople also have the opportunity to look over the shoulders of the masters as they work with their students. They will take place on Thursday, 12 September from 3-6 pm (exceptionally in the Augustinum, Römerstraße 118) and Friday and Saturday (13 and 14 September) from 10 am to 1 pm and 3 pm to 6 pm in the Chamber Music Hall. The lessons will also be streamed live on the internet. The course ends with a final concert by the participants - in the presence of the Belcea Quartet - on Sunday, 15 September at 6 pm in the Chamber Music Hall.

Tickets for the public rehearsals and the final concert are available at the usual eventim ticket agencies and in the Beethoven-Haus shop or at www.bonnticket.de.

Photos can be downloaded from the artists' websites. 

Contact:
Ursula Timmer-Fontani
Project Manager Masterclasses
Beethoven-Haus Bonn
timmer-fontani@beethoven.de
Tel. 0228-981715-16