Talich Quartet Dvořák American Quartet, 8 Waltzes

Fascinated by the folklore of his native Bohemia, and gifted with inexhaustible melodic inventiveness, Antonin Dvorak went through several creative periods as he gradually broke out of the Classical mold; the last of these was deeply influenced by the years he spent in the United States. His kindness and optimism set him apart from the other great Romantics, darker and more tormented in character, and contributed to the unique charm and accessible character of his music, which have earned him justified popularity.

Les Talich nous démontrent ici avec brio qu’il est vital pour un quatuor à cordes de se régénérer avec l’arrivée de nouveaux membres qui partagent la même volonté de faire briller au firmament la tradition de la grande école des quatuors tchèques. Ainsi, Jan Talich Jr. perpétue le « nouveau » Quatuor Talich aux côtés du violoniste Roman Patočka, de l’immense violoncelliste du Quatuor Pražák, Michal Kaňka, et de l’altiste du Quatuor Škampa, Radim Sedmidubský.

This whopping 40-disc set, which sells for very little, contains familiar performances of the major works, and most of them are quite good. As an overview of Dvorak's complete works, this is entirely honorable, and it needs to be viewed whole. Naturally you can do better in individual works, but if you want to know what the composer was all about and don't want to spend a fortune finding out, this is quite a deal.

This whopping 40-disc set, which sells for very little, contains familiar performances of the major works, and most of them are quite good. As an overview of Dvorak's complete works, this is entirely honorable, and it needs to be viewed whole. Naturally you can do better in individual works, but if you want to know what the composer was all about and don't want to spend a fortune finding out, this is quite a deal.