Ensemble Lumen

Dmitri Shostakovich – Two Pieces for String Octet, Op. 11
César Franck – Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 14

There is perhaps not a more exciting time in an artist’s career than the beginning: full of possibility and promise, works are infused with a certain youthful vigour. Ensemble Lumen guides audiences back to almost the beginning of Shostakovich and Franck’s careers. Written alongside his first symphony, Shostakovich’s Octet reveals him to be a daring young modernist: edgy, rhythmically driven, and piquantly dissonant, yet remaining lyrical. At the time, Shostakovich himself considered the scherzo ‘the very best thing I have written.’ While it isn’t known if Franck thought the same of his Piano Quintet, Liszt praised it highly, exclaiming it was unexpected from a composer ‘from the organ loft!’ The work provides a powerful counterpoint, with breathtaking colour, dynamics, and texture.