Editor’s note: Lawrence Stomberg, professor of music, has written a more detailed description of Beethoven’s career and his string quartets, which can be read here on the Department of Music’s website. The following account has been edited for length.

As the musical world prepares to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s birth, the Calidore String Quartet, University of Delaware’s Quartet-in-Residence, will join in the celebration.

The Calidore will give audiences at UD a remarkable opportunity as it presents the complete string quartets of the great master over six concerts this season. 

The two performances during fall semester will take place at 3 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 22, and at 8 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 10. All six concerts will be held in Gore Recital Hall in the Roselle Center for the Arts on the University’s Newark campus.

Performance of the “cycle” of the 16 Beethoven quartets is a goal and a career accomplishment for most professional string quartets, and the 2019-20 season marks the inaugural cycle for the Calidore. The musicians have performed Beethoven’s quartets before, but never as the entire body of work performed in one season.

“Performing the Beethoven Quartet Cycle is the most ambitious and rewarding artistic goal that we’ve shared over the past decade of performing together,” said Ryan Meehan, the Calidore’s second violinist.

“It’s is the musical equivalent of climbing Mount Everest. We can think of no greater audience to join us on this journey than our UD family.”

Each of the six concerts will mix works from Beethoven’s three compositional periods. 

The opening concert of the cycle, on Sept. 22, will feature the first quartet of the last period (Op. 127, in Eb Major), the first published quartet of the early period (Op. 18, No. 1, in F Major) and the spirited and innovative third “Rasumovsky” Quartet (Op. 59, No. 3, in C Major).

On Oct. 10, the second concert of the series offers the good-natured second early quartet (Op. 18, No. 2 in G Major) and the monumental c# minor Quartet, Op. 131, apparently Beethoven’s personal favorite of them all. It also includes the Piano Quintet in f minor, Op. 34, of Johannes Brahms, with guest artist, Russian pianist Pavel Kolesnikov.

A pairing of Beethoven quartets with Brahms is a natural one; the great Romantic composer revered the music of Beethoven and was frequently regarded in his lifetime as the next standard bearer of German composition. His Piano Quintet is one of the true hallmarks of chamber music, a substantial work of great passion and beauty.

“Pavel Kolesnikov is a brilliant and poetic pianist,” Calidore cellist Estelle Choi said. “We’re thrilled to have him join us in October for the electrifying Brahms Quintet.”

Beethoven, born in Bonn, Germany in 1770, remains a household name for good reason. 

His 16 works for string quartet are still seen as momentous and groundbreaking compositions, stretching the limits of what was possible for this combination of instruments.

Like other genres of Beethoven’s music, the string quartets are identified as members of the early, middle and late periods of his compositional career. Even in his early pieces (published in 1801), one can hear the seeds of what Beethoven ultimately became — a trailblazer who brought in a new era of an expanded compositional language. 

About the Calidore String Quartet

The Calidore String Quartet, already a favorite among UD audiences and students, is beginning its first official year as Quartet-in-Residence at the University.

Recipients of the 2018 Avery Fisher Career Grant, the Calidore musicians enjoy an active touring career, performing internationally (including recent performances in the United Kingdom at the BBC Proms and at Wigmore Hall) and at the most prominent concert halls across the United States.

Concert highlights this season include a world premiere of a new work by Anna Clyne at New York’s Lincoln Center, a debut at Washington’s Strathmore Arts Center, appearances on concert series in Boston, San Francisco and Kansas City, and a European tour.

In addition to the Beethoven cycle at UD, the quartet will be working extensively with string students and chamber ensembles in the Department of Music. Their work augments that done by UD’s string faculty and prepares students for performances of major chamber music repertoire every semester.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the work the Calidore Quartet does for us here at UD,” said Guillaume Combet, associate professor of violin and chamber music coordinator. “We appreciate the excellent guidance they give our students, and their spirit is infectious when they’re here.”