Berlin-based string group Faure Quartet to play in Asheville

Thirty years is a long time to play music with the same people. Long enough to learn each other’s habits, anticipate each other’s instincts and, occasionally, drive each other a little crazy.

For the four musicians of the Berlin-based Fauré Quartet, that mix of familiarity and friction has become part of what makes the ensemble work. Since forming in 1995, violinist Erika Geldsetzer, violist Sascha Frömbling, cellist Konstantin Heidrich and pianist Dirk Mommertz have stayed together through the inevitable changes of three decades, united by a shared commitment to the music.

“We are four very different personalities. Actually, it's a miracle that we're still together,” Geldsetzer said with a laugh. “Many ensembles — they change their members at some point or another because circumstances change, life happens. But somehow through everything, growing up and catastrophes, big changes — good and bad — we managed to stay together for 31 years. We may be very different people, but we balance each other out quite well.”

The differences, she believes, are part of what makes the music work. Another major factor is, of course, the trust and respect they have for one another. The goal, she said, is to remember that chamber music is about the collective sound: “The music matters more than any individual personality.”

The quartet's choice of instrumentation has also helped keep the musicians curious. A typical piano quartet combines piano with a string trio of violin, viola and cello, a configuration with a different balance of sounds and possibilities than the more familiar string quartet. When the musicians began playing together, none of them knew much about this configuration’s repertoire. They chose a Brahms piano quartet for their first rehearsal and discovered a musical world they wanted to explore.

Over the years, that exploration has taken them well beyond the standard classical repertoire. They have arranged Modest Mussorgsky's “Pictures at an Exhibition” for their four instruments and reimagined pop songs as miniature piano quartets. Their collaborations have included artists from outside the classical world too.

“We’ve discovered a lot together, and in fact we are still discovering things, even after 30 years,” Geldsetzer said. Despite a seemingly smaller repertoire to pull from, when compared to a string quartet, “what we’ve come to learn is that there are no borders. There are no limits to what you can do.”

For their Oct. 30 Asheville concert, presented by Asheville Chamber Music Series at West Asheville Baptist Church, the quartet will turn to three composers whose works offer contrasting ways to explore the possibilities of the piano quartet.

The program opens with Gustav Mahler's “Piano Quartet in A Minor,” a work he composed at just 16 — and his sole surviving piece of instrumental chamber music. According to Geldsetzer, Mahler reportedly destroyed much of his early works, but this piece managed to escape that fate.

“He had sent this piece in to a competition, and I believe it had gotten lost in the mail and was discovered much later, when he didn't have the chance to destroy it,” she continued. “So, we are very lucky to have it, because it's Mahler’s only existing chamber music piece.”

Despite its origins as a teenage composer's work, Geldsetzer said the piece has stood the test of time for generations of listeners. During an educational visit to a classroom of 16-year-olds, the quartet played it for students without any particular background in classical music.

“And we made them cry with the Mahler because it's so unbelievably emotional,” she said.

Next in the Asheville concert is Mozart's “Piano Quartet in E-flat Major, K. 493,” which offers a contrasting mood, lighter and more playful in spirit. Geldsetzer said the composer gives listeners opportunities to discover surprises within the music, even if they arrive without knowing anything about the piece.

The program concludes with Antonín Dvořák's “Piano Quartet No. 2, Op. 87,” whose four movements vary from a memorable opening to a period of somber reflection, then to a dance-like scherzo and lively finale.

Geldsetzer said she doesn't expect everyone to respond to the same passage or leave with the same impression. One listener might be moved by Mahler's emotional depth; another might find joy in Mozart. What matters most to Fauré Quartet’s four musicians is that the audience leaves pleasantly surprised — feeling something they didn’t necessarily expect from a chamber music performance.

“I certainly feel that this music often touches on emotions that you don’t normally experience in day to day life,” Geldsetzer said. “My hope is that you feel something — maybe forget about your worries for a little bit and lean into whatever you feel from these pieces.”

The Friday, Oct. 30 performance marks ACMS's first time presenting at West Asheville Baptist Church. Located at 926 Haywood Road next to the West Asheville Public Library, the concert space offers more room for the local nonprofit’s growing audience, as well as a stage built for warm and balanced acoustics. Ample parking can be found in the church's adjacent lot, accessible from both Haywood Road and Lynndale Avenue, with additional free parking across the street.

IF YOU GO:

What: Fauré Quartet, presented by Asheville Chamber Music Series

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30

Where: West Asheville Baptist Church, 926 Haywood Road

Tickets: $48 at ashevillechambermusic.org; youth under 25 free