Acacia Quartet Performs in Sydney Ahead Of European Debut

Founded in 2010 and comprising violinists Lisa Stewart and Myee Clohessy, violist Stefan Duwe and cellist Anna Martin-Scrase, Acacia Quartet has been invited by the Gunter Raphael Foundation in Germany where they will perform four concerts in Berlin and record three of Raphael’s string quartets.

Acacia Quartet is known for its excellent performances, inventive programs and revival of forgotten works. In this first concert in Acacia’s 2017 Utzon Room Series, the ensemble will perform Raphael’s String Quartet No 1 in e minor Op. 5 which was written when he was only 21. Premiered in 1934 by the Busch Quartet in Berlin, this performance is most likely the Australian premiere of this early work.

To complement Raphael’s early chamber work Acacia have paired it with one of Schubert’s ten early quartets, his joyful String Quartet No 15 in E flat major Op 125/1 D87.

Mozart’s String Quartet in d Minor K421, takes up the second half of the concert. It is the second of the ten quartets dedicated to Haydn and the only one in a minor key. Written in 1783, the second movement was supposedly composed while his wife Constanze was in labour.

Whilst in Berlin, Acacia will undertake a month of intense masterclasses, concerts and recording sessions. They will be performing several concerts of the string quartets before recording them. They plan to make the most of their time in Berlin to have masterclasses with members of the Artemis and Orpheus Quartets.

Read our interview with Acacia cellist Anna Martin-Scrase as she talks about the Raphael project and the life of this gifted composer.