A GLORIOUS TRADITION IS BETTER THAN EVER

Concert Review, Buffalo Spree, October 15, 2011, Slee Beethoven Quartet Cycle

Although Beethoven's symphonies and concertos have earned their prominent roles in the symphony hall canon, it is in his cycle of sixteen quartets that Beethoven's genius finds its most complete expression. As a body of work, Beethoven's quartets form a sonic diary of his musical development. Thanks to the generosity of Buffalo attorney Frederick Slee and his wife Alice, since 1955 this entire cycle, in six concerts, has been annually performed here in Buffalo by the world's best ensembles.

The 2011 Slee/Beethoven quartet cycle series began last night with an intense, virtuoso performance by the Boston-based Jupiter Quartet, one of the top string quartets in the world. 

For the uninitiated, the Slee/Beethoven Quartet Cycle Concert Series is a remarkable cultural gift bestowed upon the Buffalo community by Alice Slee, inaugurated by the Budapest String Quartet in 1955.  The entire cycle of sixteen quartets is annually performed by the world’s top ensembles, thus providing Buffalo the opp…