Role

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Ensemble

Genre

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Chamber

 

Revolutionary Drawing Room is a classical music ensemble that specializes in performing music from the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The ensemble was founded in 1990 by a group of musicians who shared a passion for the music of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic era. The founding members of Revolutionary Drawing Room were Adrian Butterfield (violin), Rachel Stott (violin), Kathryn Parry (cello), and Ruth Alford (fortepiano). All four musicians were graduates of the Royal College of Music in London and had extensive experience performing in other ensembles. From the beginning, Revolutionary Drawing Room set out to explore the rich and varied repertoire of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, with a particular focus on the music of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and their contemporaries. The ensemble's name was inspired by the revolutionary spirit of the time, and its members sought to capture that spirit in their performances. Over the years, Revolutionary Drawing Room has expanded its repertoire to include lesser-known composers of the era, such as Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Franz Krommer, and Luigi Boccherini. The ensemble has also commissioned new works from contemporary composers, including Sally Beamish and David Matthews. One of the highlights of Revolutionary Drawing Room's early career was its performance at the 1991 Edinburgh Festival, where the ensemble received critical acclaim for its interpretation of Beethoven's String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat major. The ensemble's performance was praised for its "clarity, precision, and emotional depth." In 1993, Revolutionary Drawing Room released its debut album, "Haydn: String Quartets Op. 33," on the CRD label. The album was well-received by critics and helped to establish the ensemble's reputation as one of the leading interpreters of classical music from the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In the years that followed, Revolutionary Drawing Room continued to perform at major music festivals and concert halls around the world, including the Wigmore Hall in London, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, and the Lincoln Center in New York. The ensemble also collaborated with other musicians and ensembles, including the soprano Emma Kirkby and the London Mozart Players. In 2001, Revolutionary Drawing Room received the prestigious Diapason d'Or award for its recording of Beethoven's String Quartets Op. 18 on the Linn Records label. The award recognized the ensemble's "remarkable musicality and technical skill" and cemented its reputation as one of the leading interpreters of Beethoven's music. In recent years, Revolutionary Drawing Room has continued to explore new repertoire and expand its audience. The ensemble has embraced new technologies, such as live streaming and social media, to reach a wider audience and connect with fans around the world. Today, Revolutionary Drawing Room is led by Adrian Butterfield, who serves as the ensemble's artistic director and first violinist. The other members of the ensemble include Susanna Pell (viola), Ruth Alford (fortepiano), and Ruth Alford (cello). Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, Revolutionary Drawing Room has continued to perform and record new music. In 2020, the ensemble released a new album, "Beethoven: String Quartets Op. 59," on the Signum Classics label.

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