Shostakovich Quartets: Intimate Portraits, Part 3

Shostakovich was on a chamber music roll when he composed the Quartet No 2 – its Romance tipping the wink to Tchaikovsky and Borodin. Tragedy intrudes on the 11th Quartet which mourns the much-loved Vasily Shirinsky, second violinist of the Beethoven Quartet. And standing at the gateway to Shostakovich’s late style, it’s paired with the lyrical No 14, which breathes the vivacious warmth of its dedicatee, cellist Sergei Shirinsky, and sports a heart-on-sleeve duet Shostakovich called his ‘Italian bit’. The Kyans complete the programme with Gubaidulina’s work about the nature of sound itself.

‘Polished and passionate’ is The Sunday Times’ verdict on the Carduccis’ Shostakovich; meanwhile, formed in 2020, and corralling players from the UK, US, China, and France, ‘the ebullient Kyans are certainly a foursome to watch out for’ (Planet Hugill).