Emerson String Quartet, Felix Mendelssohn - Mendelssohn: The Complete String Quartets / Emerson String Quartet
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Artist: Emerson String Quartet, Felix MendelssohnEdition: Music CD
Format: Enhanced
CD Release Date: 2005-01-11
Music Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
- 1. Adagio - Allegro vivace
- 2. Adagio non lento
- 3. Intermezzo. Allegretto con moto
- 4. Presto
- 1. Adagio non troppo - Allegro non tardante
- 2. Canzonetta. Allegretto
- 3. Andante espressivo
- 4. Molto allegro e vivace
- 1. Allegro assai appassionato
- 2. Scherzo. Allegro di molto
- 3. Andante
- 4. Presto agitato
- 1. Allegro vivace
- 2. Scherzo. Assai leggiero vivace
- 3. Adagio non troppo
- 4. Molto Allegro con fuoco
- 1. Molto Allegro vivace
- 2. Menuetto. Un poco Allegretto
- 3. Andante espressivo ma con moto
- 4. Presto con brio
- 1. Allegro vivace assai
- 2. Allegro assai
- 3. Adagio
- 4. Finale. Allegro molto
- 1. Allegro moderato, ma con fuoco
- 2. Andante
- 3. Scherzo. Allegro leggierissimo
- 4. Presto
- 1. Allegro moderato
- 2. Adagio non troppo
- 3. Minuetto
- 4. Fuga
Music reviews of Mendelssohn: The Complete String Quartets / Emerson String Quartet
Music Review: Music reconsidered
Rating: 3 Stars
I'm amending my review (below) after hearing a live performance of the Quartet in D Major, Op. 44, no. 1 by the Tokyo String Quartet in September 2008. Paired on the program with quartets by Bartok and Haydn, the Mendelssohn compared quite favorably, and prompted me to give this collection another hearing.
My judgment is that while these are works that don't rate among the world's great quartets (those of Beethoven, Haydn, and Schubert) they are nevertheless real contributions to the medium and delightful on their own and in their own idiosnycratic way. Those who love Mendelssohn's symphonies will recognize and be please by the broad, rolling melodies and the well constructed and memorable harmonies. These are not works of brilliance, but they can be as welcome as a fine Spring day. ~ J. Boyce
There is a good reason that Mendelssohn's quartets have not become a staple of modern quartets's reparatory: there are no compelling reasons to play them.
Mostly meandering trifles, these works do not measure up well against his symphonies (in which he established himself as a truly original voice) and, when compared to Beethoven's and Schubert's quartets (both his contemporaries), these are simply minor, forgettable exercises. And they have not aged well: Schoenberg, Shostakovich, and Bartok all wrote far more interesting quartets.
As for the octet (composed at 16): the melodic line introduced in movement one and reprised in the fourth is nice enough, but it's a minor piece that as a whole has little more to recommend it. Granted, Schubert's octet (the masterpiece (D 803) for horns and strings, written only three years after Mendelssohn's) is so utterly beautiful that all other octets pale in comparison.
As for the Emerson's playing: it's first rate here. They've rarely sounded better.
My recommendation: for those looking to round out their collection, this is the set of Mendelssohn's works to buy. For those seeking an introduction to the world's great quartets: start with Beethoven's middle and late quartet's, and/or all of Schubert's. Buy this set only if you have money to burn.
Description of Mendelssohn: The Complete String Quartets / Emerson String Quartet
Trust the Emerson Quartet to do nothing by halves. This 4-CD set presents all of Mendelssohn's quartets, including one written at 14, the five pieces Op. 81, as well as the Octet. This set should disprove the assertion that Mendelssohn, a sensational prodigy, blossomed young and never developed further. The difference in compositional skill and emotional depth between the early and late quartets is unmistakable; the miracle is that he could write the Octet at 16. The quartets are of uneven quality: Op. 44 No. 3 is distinctly inferior to the more-familiar Nos. 1 and 2; of the two Fugues Op. 81, the later one is far better. The quartets Op. 12 and 13 (written in reverse order) pay homage to Beethoven in Mendelssohn's very own romantic voice. Op. 80 is masterful although perhaps less disciplined: written just after his beloved sister Fanny's death and shortly before his own, it is a turbulent, heart-rending outcry of anguish. Some of the most-magical moments occur in the inimitable Scherzi and Intermezzi. The performances are vintage Emerson: impeccable individually and together, beautiful in sound, clear, carefully worked out. Although generally a little cool, they can rise to considerable warmth and passion. Not surprisingly, the best pieces elicit the most involved, exciting playing. As always, the violinists switch parts, but the whole group also alternates old Italian and modern American instruments, for the players have a surprise in store: they give the Octet a new twist by "doubling" on all eight parts through a complicated process of over-dubbing (a documentary video of the recording process is included). Here, using the different instruments is intended to combine the old and the new and to give the voices more-distinct timbres. However, the differences throughout are imperceptible. The idea of playing the Octet with themselves, so to speak, is intriguing, but the result is disappointing. Hearing four rather than eight individual voices is disconcerting, and worse, the balance is completely awry, especially in the corner movements. The busy tremolo accompaniment makes the middle register thick and heavy, the tone gets rough, important lines are obscured, and the Quartet's customary admirable textural transparency is lost. And even a cellist as splendid as David Finckel cannot save the opening of the Fugue from sounding like a growl. This may be a triumph of recording technology, but it adds nothing to the music or the performance. --Edith EislerGeneral CDs
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