Simply Quartet

The award-winning Simply Quartet made its debut at Konserthuset Stockholm in 2022 as one of the ECHO Rising Stars of the 2021/22 season. Founded in Shanghai in 2008, the quartet is now primarily based in Europe, with performances at venues such as Wigmore Hall in London, the Musikverein in Vienna, and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg.

They open this concert with Emilie Mayer’s String Quartet in G major – music by one of the most prominent women composers of the 19th century. Mayer was often referred to as “the female Beethoven,” and her music is marked by striking drama and melodic inventiveness. Hugo Wolf’s Italian Serenade is a short but exquisite piece in which lyricism and playfulness blend beautifully. Inspired by Italian folk music, it is a sparkling miniature filled with sunlit charm and elegance.

The concert concludes with Johannes Brahms’ String Quartet No. 2, where passionate melodies meet Hungarian dance rhythms. It is one of his most intimate chamber works – a contrast to the more overtly dramatic first quartet. Here, warmth and introspection take centre stage, and the music is imbued with subtle expressiveness and deep emotional power.