The 'glorious sound' of a quartet filled a church in Allendale.

On June 15, the fine acoustic of St Cuthbert’s Church Allendale echoed to the glorious sound of the Heath Quartet, Music in Allendale’s first concert in five years. Formed in 2002, the Heath have been regular visitors to Allendale, attracting a large audience.

Sarah Wolstenholme and Juliette Roos alternated as first and second violins, they played with fire and tenderness; brilliance and sweetness of tone were features of both.

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The programme included Haydn’s Eb quartet from the Op. 64 set which abounds in the lyricism, dynamic contrast and, above all, the humour which mark him out from all other composers.

Lyadov’s two short pieces, though slight, were well worth a hearing, whilst the quartet by the Dutch composer, Henriette Bosmans, was nothing short of a revelation; banned from publishing her music by the repressive regime of the Nazis it is only in recent years that audiences have been able to assess the full extent of her impressive achievement.

After the interval with refreshments, the audience were treated to Ravel’s string quartet in F, surely one of the greatest examples of early 20th-century chamber-music, the Heath’s complete mastery of this vibrant, colourful and rhythmically invigorating music reaffirming their reputation as one of the leading ensembles in the UK. The audience were enchanted.

The evening’s icing on the cake, as it were, was the lavish supper provided by the hard-working committee of Music in Allendale, where the Heath Quartet mingled and relaxed with the concertgoers.

 We look forward to our second concert this year on Saturday, September 14 at 7.30pm, a recital by the Cypriot pianist, Martino Tirimo. Among other notable achievements, he has recorded the complete piano works both of Beethoven and of Chopin; his programme in September will include the last, and what is perhaps the most challenging of Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas.

All concerts are at St Cuthbert’s Church Allendale, starting at 7.30pm. Tickets can be purchased by emailing: musicinallendale@gmail.com, or from Allendale Co-op, Allendale Post Office or Forum Books Corbridge, priced at £17.50, to include a light supper, accompanied children free.

For more information, go to the website musicinallendale.weebly.com/.