The Hugh Lane Sunday Concert Series :
Calathea Quartet
Claudia Tarrant Matthews, violin
Eleanor Hill, violin
Martha Campbell, viola
Haydn Wynn, cello
Haydn - String Quartet in B minor Op.33 No.1 [1781]
Marion Ingoldsby - Struck by a Raindrop [1999]
Britten - String Quartet No.1 in D major [1941]
Cork violist Martha Campbell joins colleagues from New Zealand, Australia and England in this exciting new string quartet
The first of Haydn’s extraordinary set of Op.33 quartets has surprises at every turn, never failing in its miraculous inventiveness. What a way to start the year!
Marian Ingoldsby’s Struck By a Raindrop was written in 1999, inspired by an anthology of haiku poetry. It was premiered at Triskel Arts Centre by the Jupiter Quartet
The first of Benjamin Britten’s three masterpieces for string quartet was written in a toolshed in California in 1941. Its language is immediately accessible, vividly descriptive and of great beauty.
The Calathea Quartet is a dynamic ensemble comprising of musicians from New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, and England. They are currently based in London, where they are Fellows of the Royal College of Music, under the guidance of Simon Rowland-Jones. Formed in 2020 at the Royal Academy of Music during their postgraduate studies, they were coached by Levon Chilingirian and the Doric Quartet. Since graduating, the Calathea Quartet have enjoyed masterclasses with Isabelle van Keulen, Tom Poster, and the Ardeo, Armida and Ragazze Quartets. With a keen interest in championing the works of underrepresented composers, they play a wide variety of repertoire from the stalwarts of the classical canon to contemporary compositions, with a particular focus on the works of composers of marginalised genders.
Competition successes include 1st Prize in the RAM Historical Women Composers Prize 2021, 2nd prize in the annual RAM Wolfe Wolfinsohn String Quartet Competition 2021 and progressing through to the semi-finals of the Royal Overseas League Ensemble Prize in 2021 and 2022. Following performances as Young Artists in 2023, the Calathea returned to Britten Pears Arts as Young Artists in 2024. Recent performance highlights include a New Zealand tour supported by Chamber Music New Zealand, West Cork Chamber Music Festival, Southwark Cathedral, and Stratford-upon-Avon Chamber Music Society. Upcoming projects in their 2024/25 season include a focus on women composers at Bloomsbury Festival, a return to Stratford-upon-Avon Chamber Music Society and their Conway Hall debut. The quartet are very grateful to Help Musicians UK for their support.
PLEASE NOTE THE SUNDAY CONCERTS SERIES IN 2026 WILL BE RUNNING TWO CONCERTS A MONTH. FOR A FULL LIST OF CONCERT DATES AND DETAILS PLEASE SEE THE HUGH LANE GALLERY WEBSITE. THE NEXT CONCERT IS JANUARY 25TH 2026 ELLEN JANSS0N, PIANO.
