If Bartók’s quartet oeuvre can be compared to that of Beethoven, his Fifth and Sixth quartets align with Beethoven’s late string quartets. The musical language is different, but the similarity in depth is striking. The rhythmic expansion of the Fifth is akin to Beethoven’s Grosse Fuge, while the introspection of the Sixth matches that of the slow movements in Beethoven’s works. In this way, Bartók concludes an unparalleled cycle of six quartets spanning thirty years.

The String Quartet Biennale presents Bartók on a grand scale, with all six of his string quartets performed in one afternoon by three world-renowned quartets: the Belcea Quartet, the Doric String Quartet, and the Jerusalem Quartet. Speaker Bas van Putten and Rebecca Wise, cellist of the Ragazze Quartet, delve into the composer’s life and, together with the musicians, provide a glimpse into the workings of this extraordinary oeuvre.