The Adderbury Ensemble is one of the finest chamber orchestras in the country, and it is a tribute to their discipline that they make the night's performance seem effortless. A note is never out of place and the musicians' movements seem almost superflous to the great music that is being channeled through their instruments - They perform with panache, in a clear state of flow.

The night begins with Mozart's String Quartet in B flat, K458, the fourth part of the composer's "long and laborous" creation of a set of six string quartets. K458 is the most relaxed of the quartets, and its simple joy is captured beautifully by the superb violinists. In this performance the adagio resonated with especial power; after the noble economy of the opening, the work subdues into gently nuanced and impish harmonies, which sound fresh and alive through the focused playing of the Ensemble.

There follows Schubert's String Quintet in C, D956. This was the more powerful section of the concert, with Schubert's stimulating contrast between violin and cello captured dramatically by the Ensemble. The imagination is led perfectly by the delicate movement between keys, and the second movement creates an effortless peace which is broken suddenly by the introduction of a sharp F minor.

Schubert's last work is performed with dedication by the musicians, and though their personal collaboration can obviously not be seen in content, it can be felt in the energy that they bring to the music; in the final stages, when the atmosphere becomes more frantic and the D flat falls to C, the music is imbued with a passionate quality that can only be found in a performance by one of the country's finest chamber orchestras.

The concert is excellent from start to finish, and the music is made cathartic, energetic, fresh and joyful by the performance of the musicians. As a person who has never before been passionate about classical music I expected to be bored, but left refreshed. If Mozart was there, inexplicably brought back to life through the dignified performance of his most tortuously-created quartets, I'm sure he would have been clapping as loudly as everyone else as the concert drew to a close.

Jason Theodorou, 13.8.4