Brother Tree Sound

Germaine Tailleferre (1892-1983)

String Quartet No. 1 (Tailleferre)

i Modére, ii Intermede, iii Final. Vif - Tres rythmé - un peu plus lent

French composer Germaine Tailleferre (1892-1983) composed her String Quartet over a creative two-year period between 1917-1919. Tailleferre dedicated the work to the famous pianist Arthur Rubinstein. When the work was premiered in 1919, Tailleferre was invited to join Nouveaux Jeunes (later known as Les Six), which consisted of a group of composers pushing the boundaries of music beyond impressionism and Wagnerism.

Maurice Ravel (1875 - 1937)

String Quartet in F major (Ravel)

i Allegro moderato – très doux, ii Assez vif – très rythmé, iii Très lent, iv Vif et agité

Maurice Ravel completed his String Quartet in F major in early April 1903 at the age of 28. It was premiered in Paris in March the following year. The work follows a four-movement classical structure: the opening movement, in sonata form, presents two themes that occur again later in the work; a playful scherzo second movement is followed by a lyrical slow movement. The finale reintroduces themes from the earlier movements and ends the work vigorously. The quartet's structure is modelled on that of Claude Debussy's String Quartet, written in 1893, although Ravel's musical ideas strongly contrast with Debussy's.

Edmund Finnis (1984-)

String quartet No. 1 ‘Aloysius’ (Finnis)

5 movements

While composing the piece I had in my mind: the shape of a valley; the image of clouds forming and dissipating; lines becoming interwoven and energy being passed around between four individuals; a sense of sounds breathing. The fourth movement is a reflection on the hymn ‘Christe, qui lux es et dies’ by William Byrd. String Quartet No.1 ‘Aloysius’ was co-commissioned by Alois Lageder and Aldeburgh Festival, and is dedicated to the Lageder family. - Edmund Finnis

Performers

Brother Tree Sound (String ensemble)

• Anna De Bruin - Violin
• Thea Spiers - Violin
• Triona Milne - Viola
• Clare O'Connell - Cello

With three albums generating over 10 million streams worldwide, recent recipients of the prestigious Vaughan Williams Foundation grant and with numerous performances in music clubs, on concert platforms, at classical music festivals, outdoor stages and folk music clubs, Brother Tree Sound is a trailblazing string quartet with a passion for inspiring audiences through their scintillating performances.

Dedicated to the performance of new music, the group regularly commissions new works from established and emerging composers. Their Vaughan Williams Foundation grant has enabled them to commission Philharmonic Society prizewinning composer Ben Nobuto to write a piece for string quartet and horn as part of an ongoing project partnering with Ben Goldscheider. A number of their projects have been generously supported by the Herbert Howells Trust, Cavatina Trust and Watford Palace Theatre and ACE.

​The group have recently released their album of early 20th century French quartets by Ravel, Tailleferre, Milhaud and Durey with First Hand records winning high praise from the critics. Brother Tree Sound have become fascinated with this transitional period of music. The album release coincides with Ravels 150th birthday Anniversary with a concert to mark this occasion.

​The quartet has a deep connection to folk music and in October 2024 they released their album Maid on the Shore. Here they are delving further into the rich and fascinating world of traditional folk songs from England, Ireland and Wales. Their heartfelt arrangements are driven by personal connections to the timeless traditions, stories and landscapes. The album includes well-known songs as well as uncovering a few hidden gems.

Members of Brother Tree Sound have played in chamber ensembles in many of Londons best loved venues including the Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Conway Hall. It is their love of the powerful intimacy of the string quartet that has brought them together and sees them continue their journey.

Over the past few seasons the quartet has recorded, made videos and commissioned music for a variety of projects. They released their hugely successful EP Interstices, in 2020 which has had worldwide success. Naming it after the Latin for ‘The Space Between’ the idea was to bring together four quite different styles of music that explore the same intangible idea of finding the spaces between notes, phrases, musical landscape and performers.The EP has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 a number of times.