Coull Quartet
Roger Coull and Philip Gallaway violins
Jonathan Barritt viola | Nicholas Roberts cello
with Martin Outram viola

Schubert Quartettsatz in C minor D703
Simpson String Quintet No 1
Beethoven String Quintet in C Op 29

With such close ties to Robert Simpson, only the Coull Quartet could be the right fit to open a Festival celebrating the composer’s works and the music of those composers he loved, especially Beethoven whose 250th birthday was to have been celebrated with the 2020 Festival.

The Coull enjoyed many years of working with Simpson, commissioning the Quartet No 10 to celebrate their tenth anniversary in 1984, in the early days of their residency at Warwick University. They premiered three of his Quartets and this Quintet, and have recorded all of these works for Hyperion over the years.

Joined by Martin Outram from the Maggini Quartet, this concert also gives a rare opportunity to hear Beethoven’s Quintet, which paired with the Simpson offers a beautiful synergy with which to begin our much-loved Festival.