Quartetto Italiano - Beethoven: The Late String Quartets
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Artist: Quartetto ItalianoComposer: Ludwig van Beethoven
Performer: Paolo Borciani
Performer: Piero Farulli
Performer: Elisa Pegreffi
Performer: Franco Rossi
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 1990-02-05
Music Label: Philips Classics
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
- String Quartet No. 12 In E Flat, Op. 127: 1. Maestoso - Allegro
- String Quartet No. 12 In E Flat, Op. 127: 2. Adagio, ma non troppo e molto cantabile
- String Quartet No. 12 In E Flat, Op. 127: 3. Scherzando vivace
- String Quartet No. 12 In E Flat, Op. 127: 4. Finale
- String Quartet No. 16 In F, Op. 135: 1. Allegretto
- String Quartet No. 16 In F, Op. 135: 2. Vivace
- String Quartet No. 16 In F, Op. 135: 3. Lento assai, cantate e tranquillo
- String Quartet No. 16 In F, Op. 135: 4. Der schwer gefasste Entschluss (Grave - Allegro - Grave ma non troppo tratto - Allegro)
- String Quartet No. 13 In B Flat, Op. 130: 1. Adagio ma non troppo - Allegro
- String Quartet No. 13 In B Flat, Op. 130: 2. Presto
- String Quartet No. 13 In B Flat, Op. 130: 3. Andante con moto ma non troppo. Poco scherzando
- String Quartet No. 13 In B Flat, Op. 130: 4. Alla danza tedesca (Allegro assai)
- String Quartet No. 13 In B Flat, Op. 130: 5. Cavatina (Adagio molto espressivo)
- String Quartet No. 13 In B Flat, Op. 130: 6. Finale (Allegro)
- 'Grosse Fuge' In B Flat For String Quartet, Op. 133: Overtura (Allegro) - Meno mosso e moderato - Allegro - Fuga
- String Quartet No. 14 In C Sharp Minor, Op. 131: 1. Adagio ma non troppo e molto espressivo
- String Quartet No. 14 In C Sharp Minor, Op. 131: 2. Allegro molto vivace
- String Quartet No. 14 In C Sharp Minor, Op. 131: 3. Allegro moderato
- String Quartet No. 14 In C Sharp Minor, Op. 131: 4. Andante ma non troppo e molto cantabile - Piu mosso - Andante moderato e lusinghiero - Adagio - Allegretto - Adagio, ma non troppo e semplice - Allegretto
- String Quartet No. 14 In C Sharp Minor, Op. 131: 5. Presto
- String Quartet No. 14 In C Sharp Minor, Op. 131: 6. Adagio quasi un poco andante
- String Quartet No. 14 In C Sharp Minor, Op. 131: 7. Allegro
- String Quartet No. 15 In A Minor, Op. 132: Assai sostenuto - Allegro - L.V. Beethoven
- String Quartet No. 15 In A Minor, Op. 132: Allegro ma non tanto - L.V. Beethoven
- String Quartet No. 15 In A Minor, Op. 132: 3. Canzona di ringraziamento (Molto adagio) - Sentendo nuova forza (Andante) - L.V. Beethoven
- String Quartet No. 15 In A Minor, Op. 132: 4. Alla marcia, assai vivace - Piu allegro - Presto - L.V. Beethoven
- String Quartet No. 15 In A Minor, Op. 132: 5. Allegro appassionato - L.V. Beethoven
Music reviews of Beethoven: The Late String Quartets
Music Review: Not the last word on these quartets, but still magnificent
Rating: 5 Stars
This might not be the last word on the late Beethoven quartets, but these reissued performances from the late 60s are undoubtedly classics, and deservedly so. What is perhaps most striking about the Italiano's approach is the richness of detail and the incandescent quality of the sound they produce. But most importantly, the radiant sound of the instruments - the remarkable balance and blend of instruments - don't get in the way for interpretation; so many of Beethoven's complex patterns and developments make such complete sense in the Quartetto Italiano's hands that I have rarely heard anything similar, especially with respect to how clear and uncluttered those complex passages sound.
That doesn't mean that all of those interpretive choices are entirely uncontroversial; for the most part I am less sure about the faster movements, which sometimes seem to lack a little bite - redblooded ferocity is traded for polished perfection and warmth (for more aggressive alternatives, maybe the Takacs will do the trick). On the other hand, some of the slower movements are peerless - often daringly slow, but with mesmerizing results when the phrasing is so perfect and the sound so well-balanced as here. And what we do get in the fast movements is often thoroughly magnificent on its own terms (superbly shaped crescendos, the use of different bowing techniques and the transitions between them). I am sometimes also unsure whether the warm but objectified approach misses some of the emotional intensity that is possible to obtain in this music. I guess that only means that you shouldn't dismiss the alternatives; now, Takacs and Alban Berg are certainly good and competitive accounts, but to get the kind of intensity I am talking about, and slightly missing, I fear you have to go back in the catalogues to something like the Busch Quartet.
Anyway, these are lesser concerns than I might have made them sound. The Quartetto Italiano performances are among the three or four ultimate classics in this repertoire, each of which choose a very different approach, none of which are probably superior to the others, just different. And no one should doubt that this is music that needs and can stand a wide variety of approaches. Sound quality on this issue is wonderful, warm and well-balanced, and this set is really a must - not, perhaps, as ones only version of the music, but it is still an essential acquisition.
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