Meta4 takes Finnish quartet works to Germany
Meta4, the celebrated Finnish string quartet, will tour in Germany in November. In addition to Meta4’s classic string quartet repertoire from Haydn to Shostakovich and Sibelius, the five-concert-tour will feature Finnish composer Jaakko Kuusisto’s quartet, titled Play III. The 12-minute work was composed in 2008 and has often been included in Meta4’s concert programmes around the world. The tour starts on 26 November in Grünewald and ends on 30 November in Rottenburg.
Two months later, in January 2015, Meta4 will return to Germany with pianist legend Olli Mustonen and oboist Sole Mustonen. This time Meta4’s repertoire will be enhanced by César Franck’s Piano Quintet in f minor, as well as Olli Mustonen’s own composition from 2010, the Quartet for oboe, violin, viola and piano. Since its composition, the quartet has already been heard at several festivals in Finland, France and Hungary, in addition to the premiere in the United States in 2011. The concerts with the Mustonens will take place from 19 to 29 January.
This autumn, Meta4 has released a new album with Béla Bartók’s String Quartets 1 and 5. The new album continues Meta4’s ambition to approach the most legendary quartet composers, a path started in 2009 by a Joseph Haydn recording and continued in 2012 with the String Quartets 3, 4 and 7 by Dmitri Shostakovich. The album is released by the German record label Hänssler Classic.