Thursday 25^th November 2010
7:30pm

Lochrian Ensemble
(String Quartet)

Four young and gifted music college and university graduates first formed The Lochrian Ensemble in 1991. Since then it has become one of the leading chamber ensembles in the South West of England. Bruno Schrecker (former cellist of the Allegri Quartet) describes the group as 'delightfully talented. ...They are my favourite string quartet in the South West. They play with great imagination, passions and sensitivity.' Tonight they play for us a wonderful programme of favourites of all seasons and Christmas.

The group is in great demand for a wide variety of events such as recitals, weddings, charity functions and festivals. It regularly records for film and television (notably The Ghost of Greville Lodge and BBC's Songs of Praise). The ensemble has entertained royalty and also worked with pop, jazz and world music artists. Appearances have been made at numerous venues spanning the length and breadth of the country including Canary Wharf, Brunel's ss Great Britain, Clearwell Castle, the Pump Rooms in Bath, Bristol Zoo, the London Transport Museum and the British Museum.

The Lochrian Ensemble enjoys the opportunity to be versatile, working with other musicians to form smaller or larger chamber groups. It frequently accompanies choral groups (such as Clifton Cathedral Choir and the Chantry Singers of Bath) as well as many other local operatic and musical productions.

The group also has a number of recordings to its name. Its debut CD, Lochrian Lollipops, was launched in 1999 and contains a selection of arrangements from the group's lighter repertoire and is regularly broadcast on radio. In 2004 the ensemble recorded the complete string quartets of Mark Springer ('The Lochrian Ensemble play them beautifully' BBC Classical Music Magazine, October 2004). The ensemble also makes guest appearances on a number of CDs including those of folk guitarist Jim Ramsey, Cuban band Asere, and Jazz singer Louise Hall. It also accompanies Clifton Cathedral Choir in the CD 'And I Saw a New Heaven'.

The Lochrian Ensemble has just finished recording a double CD of the complete string quartets of English composer Colin Bayliss. The final one, in locrian mode, is dedicated to them.