London Chamber Ensemble: Charles Wood

The Strad Issue: June 2026

Description: A centenary celebration puts a masterly composer back in the spotlight

Musicians: London Chamber Ensemble/Madeleine Mitchell (violin)

Works: Wood: String Quartets: no.2 ‘Highgate’, no.4 ‘Harrogate’; Variations on an Irish Folk Tune

Catalogue number: SOMM RECORDS SOMMCD0723

Irish-born composer Charles Wood (1866–1926) is an undeservedly neglected lynchpin in British music, connecting earlier composers to the then emerging generation in the early 20th century through his teaching. Trained at the Royal College of Music by Stanford, and as an organ scholar at Cambridge University, he was a venerated teacher: his illustrious students include Vaughan Williams, Tippett, Maconchy and Bliss. Inevitably, perhaps, his style is Brahmsian, particularly in the so-called ‘Highgate’ Quartet no.2, with a strong vein of contrapuntal skill bolstering the well-drawn textures.

A more distinctive thread features in the Variations where the influence of Irish folk music inspires Wood to deploy more advanced harmony. The Fourth Quartet (the ‘Harrogate’) is again technically accomplished, with textural sophistication and a melodiously pleasant if not particularly defined style.

Wood could not have wished for more persuasive advocates of his music than the London Chamber Ensemble led by Madeleine Mitchell, who bring a compelling energy and vivacity to their interpretations, supported by a clear recording. By today’s scary standards of perfection in the quartet world, the musicians aren’t the last word in technical accomplishment, with moments of less-honed blending and ensemble. But this doesn’t detract from the sense of commitment to an unjustly forgotten figure.

Joanne Talbot