Album

This Chandos album follows the enjoyable practice of offering listeners something fairly familiar with something relatively unfamiliar. The familiar, in this case, are the two highly programmatic string quartets of Leos Janácek. The less familiar works are the string quartets of Szymanowski, whose music is still just coming into its much-deserved spotlight. The Schoenberg Quartet has built the bulk of its career on the interpretation and performance of composers of the New Viennese School such as Berg, Webern, and of course, Schoenberg himself. Although neither Szymanowski nor Janácek fall directly into this category, per se, both of their compositions incorporate many extended techniques, polytonality, and sonic traits often associated with the New Viennese School. It is surprising, then, that the quartet's performance of these two composers is not stronger and more convincing. The ensemble possesses superior control of the color of the tone and can deftly alternate between piercing, whispering, angular, and haunting. Where it seems to lack control is in intonation, particularly in the upper registers of the first violin. Portions of each of these quartets are far from "easy listening classics" even given the best performance, but throw in pervasively problematic intonation and listening becomes an arduous chore for even the most dedicated. Despite the admirable choice of literature, this album simply does not showcase the Schoenberg Quartet at its best. While fewer alternate recordings of the two Szymanowski works are available, there exist many preferable recordings of the Janácek works.

© Mike D. Brownell, All Music Guide

CD 1
Karol Szymanowski Composer String Quartet No.1 in C, Op.37, M41 Work 17:10 Schoenberg Quartett String Quartet
1	1.Lento assai. Allegro moderato	8:04			$1.49
2	2.Andantino semplice. In modo d'una canzone. Adagio dolcissimo. Lento assai	4:39			$0.99
3	3.Vivace. Scherzando alla burlesca. Vivace ma non troppo	4:27			$0.99
Leoš Janáček Composer String Quartet No.1 ('Kreutzer'), JW 7/8 Work 18:11 Schoenberg Quartett String Quartet
4	1.Adagio	4:11			$0.99
5	2.Con moto. Vivace	4:16			$0.99
6	3.Con moto. Vivace. Andante	4:19			$0.99
7	4.Con moto. Adagio	5:25			$0.99
Karol Szymanowski Composer String Quartet No.2, Op.56, M64 Work 16:46 Schoenberg Quartett String Quartet
8	1.Moderato, dolce e tranquillo	7:14			$1.49
9	2.Vivace, scherzando	4:19			$0.99
10	3.Lento	5:13			$0.99
Leoš Janáček Composer String Quartet No.2 ('Listy duverné,' 'Intimate Letters'), JW 7/13 Work 26:08 Schoenberg Quartett String Quartet
11	1.Andante con moto	6:16			$0.99
12	2.Adagio	6:17			$0.99
13	3.Moderato	5:51			$0.99
14	4.Allegro	7:44			$1.49