The Carducci String Quartet, one of Europe’s top young string quartets, has just released a new CD of chamber music by Joseph Horovitz, which includes premiere recordings of two Novello works: Fantasia on a Theme of Couperin and String Quartet No 5 . This work was commissioned in honour of the celebrated art historian, Sir Ernst Gombrich, and premiered by the Amadeus Quartet in 1969 at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. The Fantasia, for which the Carducci Quartet is joined by a string ensemble, was first performed in 1962 at the Victoria and Albert Museum by Philomusica of London, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult. The Carducci Quartet has received prizes at seven international chamber music competitions and recently won the 2007 Concert Artists Guild International Competition in the USA. The CD appears on their own label: Carducci Classics CSQ6482 and is available from: www.carducciquartet.co.uk
