Customer Reviews

Mozart: The Six String Quintets

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Previous reviewers have said it all. This is beautiful music performed with rich, sonorous, ensemble playing. The music is played with such intimate involvement that I felt like I was intruding in on a musical conversation. For Mozart lovers this has to be the second coming. At bargain price, this recordng may well have no superiors and few equals. No hesitation here is necessary for buying this set. This is the kind of music making that takes away the fear many have of the words, "chamber muisc." For those new to chamber music order quickly as this recording comes in and out of circulation without warning. For devotees of this fine art, don't deprive yourself of this musical event.

This set of 3 CD's is absolutely an authentic gem. The sound is georgeous!! So amazingly good that you'd think you have the Talich Quartet right in your room LIVE and just playing for you!! The performance of the Quartet is impressive, conveying the musical messages from Mozart in a warm, charming and invigorating way. I just can't stop listening these pieces!! I don't get tired of them!! I have never get bored with them.

If I were to live with only three CD's in my collection of Classical Music, this set would be one of them. No doubt about it!!

If you like Chamber Music, you like Mozart and if you consider yourself to be an audiophile or demand the best sound possible for what you pay for, and if you care for only top notch performers executing to the highest standards of quality, discipline and sensitive mastery, then this CD is for you.

This is one of the great Mozart sets of all time, and the price is ridiculously low. Not only do you get the 5 original string quintets, but you also get the quintet transcription of the Wind Serenade in C minor, PLUS the clarinet quintet. The performances are marvellous: lively and sensitive, without a trace of affectation. Tempi are beautifully judged, and rubato is minimal. The G minor quintet is superbly understated: the off-beat fortes in the minuet sound like muffled cries, almost too painful to listen to. The marvels of this set are countless; I would happily pay twice the price for it. If you love Mozart, you must have these recordings.

This is a wonderful album. The Talich have lived for a long time with this music and know every nuance. And these are glorious pieces of music. The five players engage in a conversation that is continually in flux. This is not delicate, elegant Mozart, but gutsy and full of life. Hardly ever does the quintet just blend into a homogenous mass of sound (some people tend in that direction, but not Talich). These pieces are great to listen to with headphones. The recorded sound is excellent.

Mozart's string quintets, along with the E flat trio & the quartets dedicated to Haydn, are among his greatest chamber works. The Talich play with fine ensemble & technical skill. Their sound is never over blended, glossy, or over projected. They never play to the balconey. Their playing is truly an intimate dialogue. That said, they are at times, slightly too reticent in some passages. Over all though, these are excellant performances of wonderful music. These quintets, much like the "Haydn Quartets", emcompass a large range of emotions and moods.The clarinet quintet is also very well performed. This set contains great music that is well performed, well recorded, and at a most reasonable price. Why hesitate?

The Talich Quartet have given us 3 CDs of musical heaven with these quintets. Both the performance and the sound engineering are outstanding. The sound quality is, indeed, so unbelievably good that it really is as another reviewer described it: like having these musicians right in front of you, giving a wonderful performance in your own living room. I have had these CDs for over a year now and have listened to them many times with great pleasure. These quintets radiate with warmth, gracefulness, moments of touching sadness, and other moments of infectious joy. As I was listening to the clarinet quintet this morning, after having listened to it so many times before, I once again felt moved by the beauty of this performance. This is a special recording with a magical beauty.

This is a performance of the very highest quality, where the musicians communicate perfectly with each other and completely succeed in communicating to the listener their love for this music. Some of the previous reviewers have commented that even those persons who prefer other types of classical music, such as symphonies or concertos, and who do not ordinarily consider themselves as being interested in chamber music, still owe it to themselves to listen to this set. I wholeheartedly agree. This is indeed the kind of truly outstanding performance that could convert someone to chamber music. The CD booklet is also excellent, with a detailed informative essay discussing each of the quintets. Highly and enthusiastically recommended.

When some friends and I played the g minor K 516 quintet together, we ordered this CD set for us to listen to. It was soooo helpful! And, even though we are not currently working on any of the quintets, I still listen to the CD for pleasure.
I love the way the Talich Quartet plays these quintets. It has a lovely, light Mozartean sound, and their musical ideas are very clear and enjoyable. It is always so refreshing to sit down and listen to these CDs. I definately recommend this set!

The six string quintets are less commonly performed and less well known that the quartets, but they are not lesser pieces. They are robust, complex, dramatic music, full of Mozartean surprises. They should rank among his masterpieces, even the early KV 174. You will hear the future in them, more of the birth of the Romantic than the waning of the Rococo. The Talich Quartet performs them well and, as other reviewers have noted, the recording quality of these disks is excellent.

While Mozart's string quartets are somewhat uneven, the quintets are all masterpieces, especially K. 516, one of his most original and daring works. If you are a true Mozartian, this music is required listening. The performances here are simply superb, absolutely riveting in their drama. As a bonus, there is Mozart's most beautiful chamber work, the clarinet quintet. Three CD's for the price of one, outstanding music and wonderful performances, you cannot go wrong.

You don't need me to tell you, as others have, that this is a truly magnificent recording. A flawless performance by the Talich quartet in its sheer joy, vigour, precision and teamwork, and also an outstanding recording in its clarity and brightness. It helps also, of course, that the quintets are in very top rank of Mozart's chamber music. My congratulatons to all concerned.