New video: Novo Quartet performs Weinberg

The Copenhagen-based Novo Quartet releases its new single today, Weinberg’s Aria op.9.

The quartet says: ’We are hugely excited to release our brand new single - “Aria”! This brief yet mesmerising composition by the Soviet-Polish composer Mieczysław Weinberg is a teaser for our debut album which will be recorded later this year, featuring pieces intimately connected to our quartet’s ethos and upbringing. 

’We stumbled across Weinberg’s “Aria” while searching for music that resonated with our ensemble’s identity and individual backgrounds. The piece felt like a perfect fit, especially given our violist’s Polish heritage and its reflection of our collective musical expression.  

’It captivates with its simplicity of form and vocal-like qualities, enmeshed in unpredictable and often unsettling harmonies. It evokes a profound sense of emotional duality, oscillating between light and darkness, hope and distress. 

’To record this work in the Salle Cortot in Paris was such an honour and for us the perfect start to our recording journey. We could not be more thrilled and excited for this process and can’t wait to share more music with our audience later this year!’

The ensemble, comprising violinists Kaya Kato Møller and Nikolai Vasili Nedergaard, violist Daniel Śledziński and cellist Signe Ebstrup Bitsch, recently won first prize and four other awards at the Geneva International Music Competition 2023. The quartet is supported by The Danish Arts Foundation ‘The Young Artistic Elite’ programme 2024.

Aria op.9 is available for purchase today. Find out more here.

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