The Lindsays
Peter Cropper violin, Ronald Birks violin Robin Ireland viola, Bernard Gregor-Smith cello
London Chamber Music Society South Place Sunday Concerts
Conway Hall, Red Lion Place, London. 6.30, 15 December 2002 Haydn String Quartet in E flat Opus 50 No.3 (1787)
3rd time at these concerts, last played 23 Oct 1988
Prokofiev String Quartet No.1 in B minor Opus 50 (1930)
4th time at these concerts, last played 18 Jan 1981
Brahms String Quartet in C minor Opus 51 No.1 (1873)
44th time at these concerts, last played 17 Dec 2000 This was Concert 2920 of London's longest-running chamber music fixture. The statistics for the venerable early evening South Place series astonish, and there has been no comparable long-term venture in the metropolis. Despite the vicissitudes which beset all arts organizations, LCMS has maintained its concerts week by week as declared proudly at the top of every programme sheet. The price (£5 including programme) has always been ridiculously cheap - I used to go to these concerts as a student more than fifty years ago - and the younger generation is encouraged to get a taste for chamber music by free entry for 'students 8-22' ! The regular audience is loyal and knowledgeable, often packing the hall for string quartet evenings; it is inspiring to be amongst them. Conversation buzzes in the foyer and tea/coffee room during the interval. The Lindsays, who are based at Manchester University, gave one of Haydn's rarely heard Op 50 set to start, and the slow movement of its no 1 as encore, Peter Cropper marveling that this set is so neglected and that the Eb had only been given twice before in all the 112 seasons of these concerts.

The Vanbrugh Quartet, which visits Conway Hall regularly, gave Op 55/1 (never played in the series previously) in spring 2001 and I suggested that it was surely time for the London Chamber Music Society to embark upon a complete Haydn quartets series within its programmes, spread over as long as it takes.

I have attended these concerts over more than 50 years. There is nowhere in London better acoustically for listening to chamber music and The Lindsays played as well as I have ever heard them - and that is very good indeed! The first of Prokofiev's two quartets is another rarity, entirely characteristic of his inventiveness at its best and skillfully written for the medium. Finally, Brahms No 1, popular at South Place and everywhere, sometimes too 'orchestral' for comfort, but here refined so that all the lines were clearly separated and some revealing moments emphasized elements in the textures that are sometimes covered. An inspiring concert.

Wigmore Hall, London 29 December 2004
Haydn, Op 54 (1-3) & Op 77/1

Two years on, the Lindsays are on their final concert tour before retiring next summer. I went to pay my respects at the Wigmore Hall for a programme of Haydn, Op 54 (1-3) and Op 77/1. Usually placed first in a mixed recital programme, it was good to have concentrated exposure to this inexhaustible oeuvre.

A full house (standing at the back) greeted them warmly. It has to be said that they were always a little variable, and allowances have been needed for some time for some roughness. This appearance did not suggest that their decision is unwise; they were on less than top form onthis occasion and there were many passages in which the leader's intonation was noticeably less than perfect.

They have however been adding to their vast discography, and a recent release of live performances of Schumann and Brahms for BBC Music Guide is very satisfying.

Four more Haydn quartets at Wigmore Hall tonight; returns only!