About

Often teaming up with various partners on stage, Vilnius String Quartet celebrates the Čiurlionis Year by inviting you to follow the Quartet On Čiurlionis Trails. The ensemble will perform rarely heard chamber miniatures for string quartet by Čiurlionis. Written during his student years, Čiurlionis’ output in this genre is not extensive, consisting of the Quartet in C minor, two canons, three fugues and the Theme and variations in B minor. Vilnius String Quartet invites you to revisit a part of this exquisite legacy. 

The concert will conclude with the Quartet’s collaboration with a young talented clarinettist Morta Kacion, a fourth-generation musician, who studied at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, the Royal Conservatoire The Hague, and completed her master’s degree at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo. Currently she is a doctoral student at the LAMT, actively pursuing career as a chamber musician and soloist.

Vilnius String Quartet and Kacion invite you to enjoy Jörg Widmann’s spectacular Quintet for clarinet and strings, which after being recorded by the Hagen String Quartet (Myrios Classis label) was named Music Event of the Year 2023. It is one of Widmann’s most outstanding works, characterised by its concentrated content, refined expressiveness and, above all, deep emotional impact. In an opus of dazzling subtlety but firm texture, one can also hear references to the magnificent quintets of Mozart and Brahms. However, according to critics, despite its homage to both giants of music history, Widmann’s score takes on a distinctive form and tone, its translucent textures reminiscent of the free improvisational compositions of Gavin Bryars.