Label Praga

The composer of Julietta left seven string quartets that do not, by any means, form a cycle but rather a succession of testimonies stretching from 1920 to 1947. This second volume – the first is on PRAGA 250 205 - juxtaposed the French Quartet (No. 1), a lengthy and luxurious, homage to Debussy and Dvorak, the shortest (No.3) ‘pocket’ Quartet and the Sixth written in the post-war utopia, a fantastic counterpoint of madrigals for strings with astonishing polymelodicism, introduction da camera to last Symphony No. 6 (Symphonic Fantasies, 1951-53), with his earnest, struggling character and high symphonic spirit.

0 years of excellence in chamber music and historical recordings.
Founded by Czech music expert Pierre- Émile Barbier in 1991, Praga Digitals is now part of the Paris-based record company Little Tribeca, alongside the labels Aparté & Evidence.

The Kocian Quartet has earned the reputation as one of the foremost Czech string quartets of its time. Its repertory is broad, encompassing standards by Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven, as well as mainstream Czech works by Dvorák, Smetana, Janácek, and Martinu, and little-known fare by Pavel Haas and Hans Krása. But it has also introduced many new works by an array of contemporary Czech composers, including Tichy, Loudova, Kaslik, Kubicka, Riedelbauch, and conductor/composer Rafael Kubelik. The Kocian Quartet has made numerous recordings for several labels, among them Praga and Orfeo.

The Prazak Quartet is not only one of the leading string quartets from Czechoslovakia, but among the longest-lived from any country. Although most of the original membership is gone, all the current personnel has been in place since 1986, and two of the three replacements have served since the early or mid-'70s. Not surprisingly, the ensemble has shown a preference for Czech repertory, focusing particularly on Dvorák, Smetana, Janácek, and Martinu. But the group has also demonstrated an affinity for the string quartets of Haydn, Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, and other composers in the Germanic sphere. The repertory extends to the twentieth century as well, encompassing Zemlinski, Schoenberg, Berg, Schulhoff, and many others. The ensemble has made numerous recordings for a variety of labels, pirmarily on Praga, but including Harmonia Mundi, Supraphon, Orfeo, and Nuovo Era. The Prazak Quartet was founded in 1972 by cellist Josef Prazák and violist Josef Kluson, the only current original member. All of the original members were Prague Conservatory students. The makeup of the group changed often in its early years: Vaclav Remes (first violinist) joined the ensemble in 1973; Vlastimil Holek (second violinist) became the next replacement, in 1976; and then in 1986 cellist Michal Kanka replaced Prazák.

The Kocian Quartet has earned the reputation as one of the foremost Czech string quartets of its time. Its repertory is broad, encompassing standards by Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven, as well as mainstream Czech works by Dvorák, Smetana, Janácek, and Martinu, and little-known fare by Pavel Haas and Hans Krása. But it has also introduced many new works by an array of contemporary Czech composers, including Tichy, Loudova, Kaslik, Kubicka, Riedelbauch, and conductor/composer Rafael Kubelik. The Kocian Quartet has made numerous recordings for several labels, among them Praga and Orfeo.

The lute, undoubtedly the most popular instrument of European townsfolk and aristocrats in the 16th and 17th centuries, was widely played in Prague during the reign of Emperor Rudolf II. A manuscript of lute tablatures known as the Codex Jacobides was in all likelihood written by a musically gifted student of the Prague University in the early 17th century. It features notations of period dances, intabulations of songs, and vocal polyphonic secular and sacred pieces; miniatures of German, English, French, Italian, Polish and Spanish provenience. Extremely intriguing are the intabulations of vocal villanelle by Jacob Regnart, who served as Kapellmeister at Rudolf II’s court in Prague. Originally set to German texts, these pieces had found their way from Prague Castle to the city beneath, where – furnished with Czech lyrics – they lived a life of their own. The Codex Jacobides also contains works by Michael Praetorius, John Dowland and Jean Planson. Jan Čižmář studied the lute in London and The Hague with true masters (J. Lindberg, N. North, J. Held, M. Fentross, C. Pluhar), and today he is a sought-after soloist and chamber musician, performing worldwide. On the album, eight string instruments of various sizes and tunings are heard in a number of combinations, occasionally accompanied by a flute or lute ensemble and voice. Affording a taste of the music performed in Prague under Rudolf II, the CD is a true delicacy for connoisseurs and all music lovers alike.

While one might wish that cellist Michal Kanka had a more robust tone, one could not wish for a more sensitive tone. While one might wish that pianist Ivan Klansky had a more distinct touch, one could not wish for a more sympathetic accompanist. And while one might wish that their performances of both Brahms' cello sonatas, plus a transcription of his Sonatensatz in C minor, were more recklessly virtuosic, one could not wish for warmer, more lyrical, more soulful performances. It could be that Kanka and Klansky's don't have the chops for Brahms' vigorous writing, but it seems more likely that they're simply going with their hearts. Listen to their Sonatensatz: their central section flows like the milk of human kindness, but their outer sections are desultory, enervated, and weak. While their performances are so sincere that one cannot help but be moved by them, they are still so listless that one grows ever so slightly bored with them. Praga's super audio digital sound is cloudy and damp.

Unusual last Janáček chamber programme : the vital string quartets but also the Concertino, an adventurous, amazingly experimental work. Its 'programme' recalls the naturalism and anthropomorphisms of the adventures of the Cunning Little Vixen.