Takács Quartet Dvorak

Dvořák’s mature string quartets are masterly, all brimming with life-enhancing music, and Op 106 is no exception. The Takács Quartet gives superlative accounts of both this and the apt coupling by a young Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.

Dvořák's mature string quartets are masterly, all brimming with life-enhancing music, and Op 106 is no exception. The Takács Quartet gives superlative accounts of both this and the apt coupling by a young Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. 'These are both powerful, brilliantyly imagined interpretations, painted in bold, rich colours and shaped with flashing virtuosity.' (Gramophone) ' You will not hear better string quartet playing anywhere in the world today. (BBC Music Magazine). 'It's the highest-quality Haydn' (BBC Record Review).

A new release from the Takács Quartet is guaranteed to be a highlight of the musical year, and this one easily exceeds all expectations. The ‘American’ quintet dates from Dvořák’s sojourn in the New World, the quartet from his return to old-world Prague; both are marvellous works, sounding here every bit the masterpieces they undoubtedly are.

My friend Clarice Assad called me out of the blue a few months after our album Confessions earned a GRAMMY® nomination. Clarice had written the title tracks on the album, which Laura Strickling sang magnificently. “Bob,” Clarice said, “I have an idea….” I have learned that anytime Clarice has an idea, I’m interested. “I wrote a piece for Takács Quartet and bandoneón virtuoso Julien Labro. It’s a wild piece. The five of them have been performing it all over the world on tour, and I think you would like it. Actually, I know you would like it. Julien also wrote a companion piece, and the third work is by Bryce Dessner. I think you know Bryce; he lives in Paris. What a trio!” I responded that it sounded wonderful. “I want you to record these three works, plus another piece I have in mind for violin and piano. When can we do it?” Hence began one of Yarlung’s most adventurous (and I hope you will agree, successful) collaborations in the label’s nineteen year history.

My friend Clarice Assad called me out of the blue a few months after our album Confessions earned a GRAMMY® nomination. Clarice had written the title tracks on the album, which Laura Strickling sang magnificently. “Bob,” Clarice said, “I have an idea….” I have learned that anytime Clarice has an idea, I’m interested. “I wrote a piece for Takács Quartet and bandoneón virtuoso Julien Labro. It’s a wild piece. The five of them have been performing it all over the world on tour, and I think you would like it. Actually, I know you would like it. Julien also wrote a companion piece, and the third work is by Bryce Dessner. I think you know Bryce; he lives in Paris. What a trio!” I responded that it sounded wonderful. “I want you to record these three works, plus another piece I have in mind for violin and piano. When can we do it?” Hence began one of Yarlung’s most adventurous (and I hope you will agree, successful) collaborations in the label’s nineteen year history.

The peerless Takacs Quartet recently nominated for a Gramophone award for their second disc of Brahms's string quartets, continue their exploration of the Romantic chamber music tradition with this disc of Schumann. The Piano Quintet is by far Schumann's most popular chamber work and one of the most beloved works in the genre. Schumann was the first romantic composer to pair the piano with the string quartet. Schumann studied the string quartets of Beethoven, Mozart and Haydn and his quartet Op. 41 No. 3 demonstrates these influences. However, it contains many highly original strokes, particularly the casting of the scherzo as a set of variations. The Takacs Quartet are joined by Marc-Andre Hamelin in an invigorating partnership that has already been widely acclaimed on the concert platform.

The string quartets of Béla Bartók punctuate the evolution of his style and the turning points of his existence. From the Second Quartet (1915-17) reflecting the period of World War One and his troubled personal life, through the Fourth whose exploration of rhythm, tonality and timbre produces magnificent and unprecedented sonorities in its ‘night music’, to the unbearable anguish of the Sixth (1939), as his dream of fraternity was shattered against the rise of nationalism and fascism, the Jerusa lem Quartet’s programme brings us the essence of Bartók's genius. Expect reviews in Classical music press for these hm artists with an extensive, acclaimed back catalogue for the label.