Ensemble Q – The Trout

Five Quintets by Schubert, Reicha, Beach, Skipworth and Glazunov.

The number 5 has great significance in many facets of life, whether it be the number of digits on the hand, points on a star, human senses and tastes. Of course there are 5 lines in a stave, 5 Olympic rings, and 5 stars signifies the best possible result. In this program Ensemble Q celebrates the musical representation of the number 5 with five quintets of varying instrumentation, culminating in one of the most loved works of all time, the “Trout Quintet”.

Anton Reicha is a contemporary and lifelong friend of Beethoven and flings the bassoon into the spotlight with his virtuosic Variations for bassoon and string quartet. American composer Amy Beach also provides a stunningly beautiful work for flute and string quartet, while the French horn takes us on a sentimental journey with the Glazunov Idyll.

Contemporary Australian composer Lachlan Skipworth’s fine new addition to the clarinet quintet repertoire is imaginative and atmospheric and creates the perfect contrast to the sounds of the Austrian brook in Schubert’s masterpiece.