Album

While piano trios abound and string quartets are a dime a dozen, what's rare are extant, long-standing piano quartets. Compared to the former two ensembles, repertoire for the latter is less abundant but no less significant. Piano quartets are often performed by piano trios who add a viola or string quartets that sit out a member and add a pianist. The result, however, is a temporary ensemble that lacks the benefits of performing long term with the same musicians. The Ames Piano Quartet proves that not only can a piano quartet exist as its own entity, but that it can thrive. Originally formed in 1976 at the University of Iowa and now faculty artists at Iowa State University, the Ames Piano Quartet has made a name for itself as skilled interpreters of the standard popular repertoire as well as champions of new and lesser known works. The present eight-disc collection showcases the recordings the group made on the Dorian label from 1989 through 2009. Listeners will enjoy stunning, thoughtful interpretations of warhorses of the repertoire like the three Brahms quartets, two from Dvorák, and quartets from Schumann, Fauré, and Strauss, as well as enlightening performances of rarely performed quartets by Suk, Martinu, and Widor. Taken from recordings made across two decades, there is an understandable variability in recorded sound quality from disc to disc, and the Ames does not have the most spotless intonation in the world. What it does have that many others lack is a clear, singular, unified vision of the score. Every articulation, every phrase, every dynamic, and every nuance is perfectly matched across the four members. Balance within the ensemble is also pleasantly fluid, shifting to allow the melody to come to the fore without obscuring the inner voices. Adding to its polished playing and far-reaching repertoire is a very informative and well-written set of liner notes that make this collection one well worth checking out.

© Mike D. Brownell, Rovi

CD 1 of 8
Antonín (Leopold) Dvořák Composer Piano Quartet No.1 in D, B.53, Op.23 Work 32:29 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Allegro moderato	15:01			$2.49
2	2.Andantino	9:39			$1.49
3	3.Finale: Allegretto scherzando	7:49			$1.49
Antonín (Leopold) Dvořák Composer Piano Quartet No.2 in Eb, B.162, Op.87 Work 36:05 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
4	1.Allegro con fuoco	8:33			$1.49
5	2.Lento	11:11			$1.99
6	3.Allegro moderato	6:59			$0.99
7	4.Allegro ma non troppo	9:22			$1.49
CD 2 of 8
Gabriel Fauré Composer Piano Quartet No.1 in C-, Op.15 Work 30:54 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Allegro molto moderato	9:45			$1.49
2	2.Scherzo: Allegro vivo	5:26			$0.99
3	3.Adagio	7:42			$1.49
4	4.Allegro molto	8:01			$1.49
Gabriel Fauré Composer Piano Quartet No.2 in G-, Op.45 Work 33:27 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
5	1.Molto moderato	11:05			$1.99
6	2.Scherzo: Allegro molto	3:37			$0.99
7	3.Adagio non troppo	10:21			$1.99
8	4.Allegro molto	8:24			$1.49
CD 3 of 8
Richard Strauss Composer Piano Quartet in C-, Op.13, TrV137 Work 37:52 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Allegro	11:52			$1.99
2	2.Scherzo presto. Molto meno mosso	7:19			$1.49
3	3.Andante	8:47			$1.49
4	4.Finale vivace	9:54			$1.49
Charles-Marie Widor Composer Quartet in A- for Piano and Strings, Op.66 Work 29:14 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
5	1.Allegro moderato	9:06			$1.49
6	2.Adagio	8:36			$1.49
7	3.Vivace	3:52			$0.99
8	4.Allegro ma non troppo	7:40			$1.49
CD 4 of 8
Robert Alexander Schumann Composer Piano Quartet in Eb, Op.47 Work 27:49 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Sostenuto assai - Allegro ma non troppo	9:18			$1.49
2	2.Scherzo (Molto vivace)	3:33			$0.99
3	3.Andante cantabile	7:04			$1.49
4	4.Finale (Vivace)	7:54			$1.49
Johannes Brahms Composer Piano Quartet No.1 in G-, Op.25 Work 42:52 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
5	1.Allegro	14:00			$2.49
6	2.Intermezzo: Allegro, ma non troppo	8:48			$1.49
7	3.Andante con moto	11:01			$1.99
8	4.Rondo all Zingarese	9:03			$1.49
CD 5 of 8
Johannes Brahms Composer Piano Quartet No.2 in A, Op.26 Work 47:09 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Allegro non troppo	13:09			$2.49
2	2.Poco adagio	11:29			$1.99
3	3.Scherzo: Poco allegro	11:59			$1.99
4	4.Finale: Allegro	10:32			$1.99
Johannes Brahms Composer Piano Quartet No.3 in C-, Op.60 Work 32:37 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
5	1.Allegro ma non troppo	10:46			$1.99
6	2.Scherzo	4:20			$0.99
7	3.Andante	8:52			$1.49
8	4.Finale: Allegro	8:39			$1.49
CD 6 of 8
Paul Juon Composer Rhapsody for Piano Quartet No.1 in D-, Op.37 Work 29:51 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Moderato	10:00			$1.99
2	2.Allegretto	5:41			$0.99
3	3.Sostenuto	14:10			$2.49
Sergey Ivanovich Taneyev Composer Piano Quartet in E, Op.20 Work 39:25 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
4	1.Allegro brillante	13:24			$2.49
5	2.Adagio più tosto largo	9:47			$1.49
6	3.Finale: Allegro molto	16:14			$2.99
Alexander Borodin Composer Prince Igor (opera; completed by Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov)...Act 2 Work Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
7	17a.Polovtsian Dance: Flowing Dance of Young Maidens; 17b.Dance of the Savage Men; 17c.Polovtsian Dance: Dance of the Slaves; 17d.Polovtsian Dance: Dance of the Young Men	9:44			$1.49
CD 7 of 8
Josef Suk Composer Piano Quartet in A-, Op.1 Work 21:16 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Allegro appassionato	6:57			$0.99
2	2.Adagio	7:09			$1.49
3	3.Allegro con fuoco	7:10			$1.49
Vítězslav Novák Composer Piano Quartet in C-, Op.7 Work 22:03 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
4	1.Andante	8:12			$1.49
5	2.Scherzino: Allegretto comodo	5:44			$0.99
6	3.Rondo: Allegro	8:07			$1.49
Bohuslav Martinů Composer Piano Quartet, H.287 Work 23:40 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
7	1.Poco allegro	6:22			$0.99
8	2.Adagio	8:51			$1.49
9	3.Allegretto poco moderato	8:27			$1.49
CD 8 of 8
Ernest Chausson Composer Quartet for Piano and Strings in A, Op.30 Work 35:21 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
1	1.Anime	11:46			$1.99
2	2.Tres Calme	8:30			$1.49
3	3.Simple et sans hate	3:45			$0.99
4	4.Anime	11:20			$1.99
Camille Saint-Saëns Composer Piano Quartet in Bb, Op.41 Work 29:56 Ames Piano Quartet Ensemble
5	1.Allegretto	7:04			$1.49
6	2.Andante maestoso ma con moto	6:44			$0.99
7	3.Poco allegro piu tosto moderato	6:28			$0.99
8	4.Allegro	9:40			$1.49