As a Vienna-based ensemble, the Motus Quartet enjoys putting together concert programs based on works from the Viennese schools that have had a major influence on music literature. At their concert in April, they will present a Hungarian contemporary work alongside two classical masterpieces, once again forming a Viennese sandwich, likewise to their concert at the BMC last year.

Joseph Haydn's Op. 33 series addresses audiences with a radical, innovative voice for its time. One of the milestones in the development of the quartet is undoubtedly this six-piece series, full of unexpected twists, novel techniques, and structure. The evening begins with the fifth string quartet in G major. The opening motif is a question, "How do you do?", which is very characteristic of Haydn's cheerfulness and has become a famous hallmark of the piece. The conversation across centuries opens with this cheerful overture.

At the heart of the Viennese sandwich is an earlier string quartet piece by György Kurtág, who celebrates his 100th birthday this year. The 12 microludes were composed in the memory of András Mihály and will be performed by the Motus Quartet under the guidance of the composer himself. The work is strongly linked to the tradition of music history: in both its structure and tone, it is comparable to the masterfully crafted miniatures of the Second Viennese School. However, the series, which connects to tradition in many ways, opens up a completely new world of sound to the listener. It is permeated by the principle so characteristic of Kurtág's creed: a whole world lies in a single note, a single gesture.

After the intermission, at the end of the conversation, we return to another masterpiece of Viennese classical music. However, we can observe how astonishingly far the path has led from Haydn’s early work: the first of Beethoven's late string quartets, the String Quartet in E-flat major, Op. 127, conceals profound content, reaches for transcendent heights, and strikes a decidedly positive, life-affirming tone that is quite unexpected from its composer. Beethoven's late quartets can rightly be called the pinnacle of the chamber music repertoire, which every quartet dreams of approaching – the Motus Quartet has also embarked on a lifelong exploration of these masterpieces.