Customer Reviews

String Quartets 1 & 2

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Comprised of graduates from the Prague Academy, the Stamitz Quartet was established in 1985 and immediately gained recognition in Europe. (It's readings of Dvorák's Quartets were awarded France's Grand Prix du Disque, 1988).

The Stamitz' hallmarks include mellifluous string technique--(first violinist B. Matousek was a pupil of both Milstein and Schneiderhan), and fine inner voicing.
Indeed, the Stamitz follows the Amadeus in effect that the string quartet ensemble consists of one instrument played by four artists.

The Stamitz brings a fine Bohemian sensibility to Borodin's much beloved D-major Quartet, but the main feature here is their incredibly vivid dreamy-dramatic reading of Borodin's great A-major Quartet: the Stamitz realize an highly original interpretation within a concept of the Four Seasons.

This conceptual year begins in the Fall with a very cozy and expanded soundscape in Movement I.
The heart of the work lilts in the enchanting `winter dreams' of Movement II wherein the Stamitz emphasize Borodin's avant-garde ambiguous tonality. (At over :09mins this may be the longest reading on record.)
Movement III embodies a verdant Spring (with a shimmering Trio), while the searing Summer is evinced in the Finale (akin to Vivaldi's minor key Summer).
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Comparative timings, Borodin String Quartet No. 1:

Stamitz (1995)
i. 14'04
ii. 09'02
iii. 05'32
iv. 11'16

Borodin (1979)
i. 13'23
ii. 07'40
iii. 05'14
iv. 10'34

Lindsay (2002)
i. 13'15
ii. 06'17
iii. 05'36
iv. 10'01
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Dvorák: Complete String Quartets (Box Set)
Dvorák: Complete String Quartets (Box Set)
String Quintets Op. 77 and Op. 97
Kozeluh: String Quartet Op.32, Nos.1-3
Mozart: Oboe Quartet, K370; Oboe Quintet, K406; Adagio, K580
Bohuslav Martinu: The String Quartets (7) / Madrigal for Violin & Viola / String Trio - Stamitz Quartett
Smetana / Janacek / Martinu: Complete String Quartets
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