Brodsky Quartet | Cabot Hall, London

Cabot Hall must be one of London's best-kept secrets. Hidden in the bowels of Canary Wharf, lofty and grandiose, with something of the Titanic ballroom about it, it made a novel setting for the Brodsky Quartet's enterprising Opus 18 Project. The idea was to perform all six of Beethoven's first set of string quartets, plus six new quartets by contemporary composers "inspired by Beethoven" - 12 pieces in all, spread over three concerts.

Cabot Hall must be one of London's best-kept secrets. Hidden in the bowels of Canary Wharf, lofty and grandiose, with something of the Titanic ballroom about it, it made a novel setting for the Brodsky Quartet's enterprising Opus 18 Project. The idea was to perform all six of Beethoven's first set of string quartets, plus six new quartets by contemporary composers "inspired by Beethoven" - 12 pieces in all, spread over three concerts.

The Brodsky's calm, authoritative command of the material was evident from the opening notes of Beethoven's first quartet - music so serene that it was difficult to remember how challenging it seemed in 1800. Already, though, by the closing tarantella, the composer was clearly pushing at the boundaries of the genre. Karen Tanaka's At the Grave of Beethoven, played immediately next to the work by which it was inspired (as were all the new pieces) was a surprise, coming from a former graduate of IRCAM; the "pure spirit and ardent hope" of the young Ludwig inspired an eloquent, lyrical and quite tonal tribute, with murmurous accompaniments and beautiful, sad, unfolding textures.

Given that much modern music is perceived as "very difficult to perform and not at all popular" (a contemporary comment on Beethoven's Opus 18), it was interesting that the second new piece, Sally Beamish's Opus California, was again surprisingly easy on the ear - in this case partly in response to the directness of 20th-century American composers. Lucid rising sixths in the "lullaby" section and edgier metallic raspings in the finale contributed to an assured and pleasing whole.

The Opus 18 No 4 quartet that followed showed the young Beethoven further establishing his creative personality with dramatic crashing alternating chords in the opening, offbeat syncopations and a fiery "gypsy" finale.

Thursday's concert paired numbers 2 and 5 of the Beethoven set with new quartets by Tunde Jegede and Dimitri Smirnov. The warmth and singing quality of Opus 18 No 2, brought out so effectively by the Brodskys, evidently influenced Jegede's Quartet No 2. Strong, four-square rhythms and a modalism at times reminiscent of Vaughan Williams led to a final fade-out in a piece that was engagingly warm-hearted if a little undigested.

Warmth was not a feature of Smirnov's Quartet No 6, the most "avant-garde"offering so far: a spectral "portrait of Beethoven" preceded a finale in which clever games with musical alphabets contributed little to the complicated, dissonant textures. The ending, disappearing into ethereal harmonics, suggested that this piece was most effective when simplest.

Finally, Beethoven's magnificent Opus 18 No 5 anticipated the young genius's full flowering, especially in the third, variation, movement - played with some intensity by the Brodsky Quartet - bringing the evening to a triumphant close.