Bows drag while fingers pluck. Bodies sway as sound is emitted from strings to the audience. Two violins, a viola and a cello are manipulated by four men to create the Danish String Quartet.
On Nov. 19, the GRAMMY-nominated and critically acclaimed Danish String Quartet came to Bryan-College Station to perform at the First Presbyterian Church of Bryan. The concert was made free to the public thanks to the work and help of sponsors by the Friends of Chamber Music.
Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen, Asbjørn Nørgaard and Frederik Øland are the founding members of the Danish String Quartet, before Fredrik Schøyen Sjölin joined in 2008. Sørensen, Nørgaard and Øland met at 13 years old at a Danish music camp for amateur musicians and have been together as a group for 23 years. They said their three albums and performances have garnered praise from The Washington Post, The Guardian and The New York Times.
“Being nominated was incredible and has meant so much to us as a group; it’s opened doors we could only dream of,” Øland said. “When we started playing together, none of us would have dared hoping for a Grammy nomination, but we followed it, witnessed one legend after another receive the honor, then all of a sudden it was us and frankly it was a bit surreal.”
At the concert, the quartet did pieces based on Igor Stravinsky, Jonny Greenwood and Ludwig van Beethoven. Taking liberties, the quartet said they had mixed a little bit of Greenwood with Stravinsky after some practice in the dressing room. The two-hour concert included an intermission and much applause.
“Oh, the string quartet is just wonderful,” Friends of Chamber Music Board of Directors Volunteer, Lorraine Lindsay, said. “Their portrayal, their interpretation of classics is great, and I love it when the performers bring something of their home to us.”
With their own albums of traditional string music from back home and a few from places in Northern Europe and original compositions from the quartet, the process of composing is spearheaded by Sørensen and Sjölin, but the quartet works together on the final arrangements. Øland said it’s a process they enjoy and that has marked how they approach and interpret classical music.
“We stand on the shoulders of so many great string quartets: [Alexander] Borodin, [Wolfgang] Amadeus [Mozart], [Roger] Emerson and Alban Berg, but also newer ensembles like ARTEMIS, Belcea [Quartet] and the likes,” Øland said. “The traditions are thriving and, at the moment, there are so many good young string quartets as well, but we draw our inspiration not only from the world of string quartets but from a lot of places in the musical world.”
The quartet is said to take an active role in reaching new audiences through special projects. They established an annual festival in 2007 that they host in Copenhagen. Their concert series, Season of Four, is a recipient of awards including Musical America’s 2020 Ensemble of the Year, the Carl Nielsen Prize and the Léonie Sonning Music Prize. Their appearance in Bryan connected with the local audience with the quartet even staying for a brief period after their performance to talk with fans before heading back onto the road.
“Being fully aware of the impeccable artistic reputation that the Danes [Danish String Quartet] have worldwide, we expected from them a lot,” Artistic Director of the Friends of Chamber Music Elena Reece said. “As one critic put it, ‘There are simply two kinds of string quartets: the Danes, and the others.’ Now that their performance made it evident for us, we can second that; the concert was truly outstanding.”