Cuarteto Casals

Haydn & Schubert

The subtitle of Schubert’s String Quartet No. 14 refers to the song Der Tod und das Mädchen that he had composed earlier, in 1817. Schubert uses the same ‘Death and the Maiden’ melody in the slow second movement, in which Death seems to make itself heard in the slow, deep chords. The maiden tries to resist, but Death appears to reassure her with the words, “Give me your hand... sleep softly in my arms.” The entire work hints that the composer himself was staring death in the face: from the tumultuous first movement to the demonic tarantella in the finale. Cuarteto Casals, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this season, adds works by the contemporary composer Raquel García-Tomás Raque and an early quartet by Haydn.