Customer Reviews

Beethoven: Middle String Quartets

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The Orion Qt. is giving a two-year cycle of the Beethoven quartets here in Santa Fe, and I've just come back from a concert that featured the second Razumovsky quartet, Op. 59 #2. The audience was captivated by the forceful, virile playing of this group, which has been in existence for 20 years. They do quite a lot of contemporary music (Kirchner, Harbison, Lieberson) and Kronos-like crossover work with musicians like Chick Corea. For me, their somewhat aggressive, extroverted style doesn't always suit Beethoven's intent. But they sound spontaneous, without the polished sheen that can make even the best quartets sound too studied (I have the Emerson Qt. in mind).

Beethovven's middle quartets take well to a robust approach. There are no mysteries to solve, unlike the late quartets, and the Russian folk material in the Razumovsky group comes off as rollicking and uncomplicated. The various slow movements are a bit too monochrome, however. Don't look for musical depth on the order of the Budapest or Alban Berg Qts., or great virtuosity. The two violinists in the Orion are brothers, and my impression is that the first violin dominates stylistically. His solos are the most forceful; when the viola and cellist are thrust into the spotlight, their approach is more recessive.

In any event, the recorded sound is good, the price is certainly right, and the performances are engaging.