A fine bargain CD

Mendelsohnn String Quartets Revisited

As I said the previous time, I have excellent memories of Mendelsohnn's SQs, so I got the new Juilliard recording and fairly soon after got hold of the opus 12 & 13 performed by the Eroica Quartet.

The Eroica is a British ensemble formed in 1993, playing according to period practice, which in the case of romantic composers like Schumann (I discussed their recording of the 3 Schumann SQs at some other time) and Mendelsohnn means trying to get hold of performance scores of the premiere ensembles (or as close as possible) to figure out the bowing marks etc.

They play with fairly little vibrato which means the sound is a tad lean at times. However, I have to say the 1998 Juilliard plays these works with so much vibrato it occasionally feels they're throttling the notes to death.

The history of vibrato is an interesting one - like so many things in art it changes from a technical device to an expressive means. First vibrato served as a means to achieve perfect pitch (or mask the fact that the singer or string player wasn't really achieving it). Later vibrato came to signify emotion at the big notes: the soprano's shaking fist at the high C etc.

I have to say, I clearly prefer the Eroica performance (it was their debut recording on Harmonia Mundi), there's more fleetness to their performance, After all these are works of a teenager! And the plus is they've recorded a second disc of Mendelsohnn SQs - and another plus is the excellent sound.

Oh, and may I ask, Todd, how's your baby daughter doing? Any discernible musical preferences yet? Is she a Fürtwänglër kind of girl?

Herman

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Oh, and may I ask, Todd, how's your baby daughter doing? Any discernible musical preferences yet? Is she a Fürtwänglër kind of girl?

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Well, I cannot say that she is a Furtwangler fan, yet. I can say with a great deal of confidence that she enjoys Haydn's symphonies after she had the distinct pleasure of listening to about 50 of them with me. She also rather fancies Haydn's string quartets. It took some time, but now she likes them. Other favorites of hers include Beethoven's solo piano music (always a good sign), much 20th Century repertoire, and a good deal of Mozart.

Her absolute favorite music is without question Mikhail Pletnev's recording of sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti. Every time I throw on either disc she almost immediately will cease whatever she is doing - either crying or eating - and listen intently. Ivo Pogorelich's traversal of a smaller number of sonatas also catches her fancy.

Alas, she does not appear to like much Bach beyond the B Minor Mass; she always gets fussy and has thrown crying fits during the Goldberg Variations. Clearly I must work on this.

I may check out the Eroica's Mendelssohn at some point; I have been extremely impressed by their Schumann.

Hi Todd,

This is turning into the Mendelsohn thread. If you're interested in the Eroica playing the Mendelsohn SQs, keep in mind there's been a second installment disc with the third and fourth SQ, Opus 44.

I've ordered this disc this weekend, and my expectations are high, since the Eroica Quartet, at age nine, is still an ensemble on the upswing, and this is their most recent recording.

Yesterday I discovered a 1989 ASV disc by the Lindsay String Quartet on my shelves, with Mendelsohn's sixth quartet opus 80, composed, to put it bluntly, in the few months between his sister Fanny's death and his own demise.

The traditional literature is none too flattering about mature Mendelsohn, but it's a beautiful, poignant piece with gritty textures, and I have to say I have never been as struck with the excellence of the Lindsays (live at Blackheath) as this time. Glowing ensemble playing.

Finally I have to confess I admire your little daughter's taste in music a lot. None of that heavy stuff. I feel the same way. So don't be surprised if I show up on your doorstep in 18 years time asking for a date - though I might be over a hundred years old by that time.

Herman

Yesterday I picked up Stephen Kovacevich's recording of the three Bartok Piano Concertos on Philips Eloquence. My local specialist shop had to import a batch of Eloquence titles from Australia for them to hit the US Market. (Ross - this disc should be readily available for you.)

Let me say first that this is an immensely enjoyable disc, and should dispel any incorrect labeling of Mr. Bishop being boring. That written, this is Bartok playing of the ham-fisted, Bartok-is-brutal style rather than the more appropriate gentler and more complex style demonstrated by Mr. Bartok's fellow countrypersons: Sandor, Schiff, and Annie Fischer. (I'm still waiting for the Kocsis set to become available here again.) Altogether a great bargain at $7, and a fine addition to my collection, if not quite my first choice in this repertoire.

Hi Todd,

By now I have the Mendelsohn String Quartets op 44 1 & 2 by the Eroica Quartet, and I can tell you they're definitely and firmly recommended.

Herman