COMPOSERS: Schubert
LABELS: Hyperion
ALBUM TITLE: Schubert
WORKS: String Quartet No. 13 in A minor (Rosamnde); String Quartet No. 14 in D minor (Death and the Maiden)
PERFORMER: Takács Quartet
CATALOGUE NO: CDA 67585
Schubert’s two most accessible
quartets receive interpretations on
this disc which are as near ideal as
one is ever likely to hear. In a time
of great string quartet playing, the
Takács Quartet stand out for the
passion and the poise of their playing.
Of these two agonised works, the
Rosamunde Quartet in A minor is
tricky in that it is easy to render it
invertebrate with grief. The Takács
avoid this, partly by taking fairly
brisk tempos, partly by avoiding
the excessive vibrato which more
emotional teams bring to it. And they
bring a charm to the last movement,
which makes its underlying sadness
all the more poignant. The absolutely
ideal Hyperion recording, which has
great depth and warmth, enables us
to hear all the accompanying detail,
without making it seem as if the four
instruments are of equal importance
all the time – which they manifestly
aren’t in Schubert.
The D minor Quartet, Death and
the Maiden, is a savage and despairing
piece, yet it still has to be kept within
bounds – just. Once more the Takács
manage this perfectly, and though
they realise all the stridency of the
work, their performance never leads
to aural fatigue. Michael Tanner
