Fitzwilliam String Quartet and Sarah Nicolls perform The Piano Quintet in G Minor by Dmitri Shostakovich, and other works Thursday 11th September 2025 at 7.30pm The Fitzwilliam Quartets international reputation was forged early on through their unique friendship with Dmitri Shostakovich. The eminent composers preferred performers, the quartet performed the Western premires of his last three quartets and went on to produce the seminal recording of all fifteen. Now to mark the 50th anniversary of Shostakovichs death, the quartet has joined forces with pianist Sarah Nicolls to perform the composers only piano quintet, the 1940 premiere of which featured Shostakovich himself at the piano. One of the longest established string quartets in the world, the Fitzwilliam Quartet has appeared regularly across the UK, Europe, North America, the Middle and Far East, and Southern Africa. They have held numerous university residencies in the UK and US and made many award-winning recordings for Decca, Linn, and Divine Art. Their repertoire ranges from gut-string recordings of Schubert and Beethoven to innovative new commissions from composers including Ian Stephens, Michael Blake and Liz Dilnot Johnson, and collaborations with German saxophonist Uwe Steinmetz and former Turtle Island Quartet violinist Mads Tolling. Since winning the British Contemporary Piano Competition in 2000, Sarah Nicollshas gone on to premiere works in concert halls from London to Seoul and Sao Paulo, and for BBC broadcasts with London Sinfonietta and the Philharmonia. She is currently re-inventing the piano itself, supported by Innovate UK and Arts Council England, and is a Visiting Senior Research Fellow in Music and Engineering at Kings College, London. Programme Alexander Glazunov: Interludium in Stile Antico (Movement 3) from 5 Novelettes, Op. 15 Mieczyslaw Weinberg: Improvisation and Romance Dmitri Shostakovich: String Quartet no 11 Dmitri Shostakovich: Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 57 Tickets: Adult Advance 24.00 on the door on the night they will cost 28.00 Under 18 years 5.00 Children are welcome if, like adults, they can sit quietly and enjoy the music.