Notos Piano Quartet – Bradford Cathedral

THE THREE piano quartets performed by this British group made a very pleasant appearance in Bradford Cathedral.

Centrally placed under the arch to the fore in deepening range of sound, and back to centrally by grand piano, the lid always open, was an excellent choice.

The distinction between the three composers was correspondingly marked, offering a timespan of nearly 150 years.

The easy brilliance of Mozart’s K.478 quartet was much to the fore.

He achieves an effortless command of phrasing, which makes others seem less easy, certainly different. It is not possible to object to the route he pursues.

This was marked before the interval when the first two movements of Schumann’s Op.47 quartet felt unhappy, struggling even to satisfy.

But the third movement of Andante Cantabile was god-given and joy for players and listeners alike.

The distinctive phrases of Brahms’s more serious intentions were clearly felt though not always as quickly delivered to satisfy his intentions, and the striking dominance of the third movement led to too much variety of tempi, before concluding in an emphatic outpouring of feeling.

The group certainly deserved the Mozart encore that they won.

• Visit bradfordcathedral.org for details of future chamber concerts.

• John Pettitt