The Rias Amadeus Quartet Recordings, Volume 5 : Romanticism

Description

The release of the Audite box sets of the Amadeus Quartet's recordings continues with this new volume dedicated to the Romantics: Brahms, Schumann, Mendelssohn, and more exceptionally, the quartets of Verdi and Grieg, as well as the quintets of Dvořák and Bruckner (with Cecil Aronowitz). Like the others, this volume unfortunately suffers from muffled sound and a rarefied space that deprives us of the intense breathing of the four members of the quartet (Brainin, Nissel, Schidlof, Lovett) and their instruments (three Stradivarius, one Guarnerius). What remains is the unique legacy of a legendary quartet founded in 1947 and dissolved in 1987. These Berlin studio recordings made between 1950 and 1969 showcase the unwavering determination of musicians (three Viennese, one English) united by a spiritual pact: to commune through and in music. The Brahms (quartets and quintet, including the one with clarinet (here Heinrich Geuser)) are a bit rough, overtly driven by speed and action but vibrant and infinitely tender in the intermediate movements. The two Schumann pieces and the Dvořák quintet are feverish, almost external. The Mendelssohn (op. 12) is more Viennese, Mozartian than romantic. In contrast, the Bruckner quintet is moving from start to finish, led by a shared emotion. The Grieg and Verdi are approached with as much integrity as majesty. In the end, a wonderful testimony of Apollonian accuracy and balance that one will never tire of re-listening to for the simple nostalgia of a time when nobility and beauty were intrinsically linked. (Jérôme Angouillant)