Schubert: The Last Four Quartets

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Few quartets match this legendary Italian ensemble for tonal sheen and refinement. The ensemble imbues the famous variations movement of "Death and the Maiden" with a kind of choked inwardness that never dematerializes into bathos. One might wish the players to allow Schubert's extroverted moments their giddy head, rather than reigning things in. The group embarks upon the composer's other-worldly G Major Quartet with quiet, trembling tread, making you work with them as they divine the music's visionary beauties and dark truths. Listen to this performance in a quiet space, with the lights out. --Jed Distler

Schubert: The Last Four Quartets, Music, Franco Rossi, Franz Schubert, Piero Farulli, Elisa Pegreffi, Paolo Borciani, Chamber, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Quartet for Four String Instruments

Average customer rating:

I love this cd!

As good as it gets

Good Value, But Hardly the Best Recording

Flawed "Death and the Maiden"

Legendary Italians

Schubert: The Last Four Quartets
Franco Rossi , Franz Schubert , Piero Farulli , Elisa Pegreffi , Paolo Borciani , and Quartetto Italiano
Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
All Works by Schubert | Schubert, Franz | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
General | Classical | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B0000041BX
Release Date: 1995-04-11

Tracks:

String Quartet No. 14 In D Minor, D. 810 'Death And The Maiden': 1. Allegro
String Quartet No. 14 In D Minor, D. 810 'Death And The Maiden': 2. Andante con moto
String Quartet No. 14 In D Minor, D. 810 'Death And The Maiden': 3. Scherzo. Allegro molto
String Quartet No. 14 In D Minor, D. 810 'Death And The Maiden': 4. Presto
String Quartet No. 13 In A Minor, D. 804 'Rosamunde': 1. Allegro ma non troppo
String Quartet No. 13 In A Minor, D. 804 'Rosamunde': 2. Andante
String Quartet No. 13 In A Minor, D. 804 'Rosamunde': 3. Menuetto
String Quartet No. 13 In A Minor, D. 804 'Rosamunde': 4. Allegro moderato

Tracks:

String Quartet No. 15 In G, D. 887: 1. Allegro molto moderato
String Quartet No. 15 In G, D. 887: 2. Andante un poco moto
String Quartet No. 15 In G, D. 887: 3. Scherzo. Allegro vivace
String Quartet No. 15 In G, D. 887: 4. Allegro Assai
String Quartet No. 12 In C Minor, D. 703 'Quartettsatz': 1. Allegro assai

Amazon.com

Few quartets match this legendary Italian ensemble for tonal sheen and refinement. The ensemble imbues the famous variations movement of "Death and the Maiden" with a kind of choked inwardness that never dematerializes into bathos. One might wish the players to allow Schubert's extroverted moments their giddy head, rather than reigning things in. The group embarks upon the composer's other-worldly G Major Quartet with quiet, trembling tread, making you work with them as they divine the music's visionary beauties and dark truths. Listen to this performance in a quiet space, with the lights out. --Jed Distler

Customer Reviews:

I love this cd!.......2007-02-16

How can people give this less than 4 stars!? The performance by the Quartetto Italiano is great. Very confident and powerful playing. If you like "in your face" recordings you will like this. Very close miked and "hot" sound. Clearly played and wonderfully recorded. There may be better individual recordings, but as a set of four this is a stone cold bargain. I would highly recommend this cd.

As good as it gets.......2007-02-11

I had not come across the Quartetto Italiano before which is not so surprising as these recordings were made 30 - 40 years ago. However it is a great delight to find them as their playing delightfully taut and energetic. Maybe the tempo is a little slower than expected in the Andante of the G major quartet but it still brings out some wonderful highlights.
It would be surprising to find a btter recording anywhere.
Phil Rowe

Good Value, But Hardly the Best Recording.......2005-09-02

When I like a body of work by a composer, I collect many different recordings. For me, Schubert's late string quartets are perfect. I own several versions including the Melos Quartet and the Auryn Quartet. This Philips recording is a recent addition, and while it is a fair value, the sound is mediocre and the interpretation is irritating to me(every movement is slow, slow, slow).

Try to find a copy of the Auryn Quartet if you can. The recordings are magnificent and the music is perfect.

Flawed "Death and the Maiden".......2005-06-03

I am surprised that Alan Lekan ("Legendary Italians" 5/31/05) is the only reviewer to comment on the "booming" or thumping sound that appears throughout quartet number 14 regardless of the quality of playback equipment. Although the performances are outstanding Philips should never have released this recording, or at least not without a warning. Recommended purchase only to those who have other versions of #14.

Legendary Italians.......2005-05-31

The great composer Franz Schubert is often talked about as a "late bloomer," referring to how his last compositions emerged with great maturity, emotional complexity and consumate skill. These last four quartets are part of this final, masterful phase of Schubert's short life as a composer and should be in every chamber-music collector's shelf.

Among the finest performances of these great quartets stands the recordings here from the legendary Quartetto Italiano - one of the top quartets in the 60's and 70's. The Quartetto Italiano really have a nack for penetrating the depths of such emotive works as #14 or #15 and bring out the intended drama and pathos within. Their powerful reading of the great, last quartet in G (#15) is especially noted by many major reviewers as one of the finest recordings of this complex masterpiece. The first movement in particular is epic in scale (lasting some 25 minutes) and exudes a powerful, anguished emotional mood which the Italianos bring out with tremedous depth and passion that can send chills down your spine. In all, their playing is of the highest caliber and just sounds superb in terms of synchonicity, intonation and phrasing. Their unison within cresendos is impeccable as was their ability to create sonorities on a "symphonic scale."

However, I found one quirky sonic flaw throughout the entire "Death and the Maiden" and other quartets when listening with headphones: there was an intermittent and jarring "booming" sound that is quite distracting. It is probably not be an issue without headphones, but be forewarned nevertheless. Overall, the sound quality is very good but not perfect given the transfer to CD from the 1960's analog tapes. There is not quite the depth and realism of more modern recordings in general, but this should not discourage purchase for most.

Other quartets to consider for these works are the Guarnari Quartet and, in some works, the Emersons - although the Emerson's style is more "direct" and less "old world graceful" like the Alban Berg's or lyrically soaring like the Quartetto Italiano's overall sound. The Quatuor Mosaiques also recorded a powerful reading of the Rosamunde quartet and others that ranks with the best. All-in-all, I would say the Italianos is of the finest SETS of Schubert's greatest (last) quartets - although some individual quartets may be better represented by other ensembles. When I hear music of this stature, it reminds me how unfortunate it was for Schubert that his enormous talent and output was not recognized and valued in his day. And these last quartets are only a small part of that heritage.

Average customer rating:

One of the top classic albums of 1994!

Schubert: The Last Three Quartets

Manufacturer: Nimbus Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000E04Y
Release Date: 1994-12-06

Customer Reviews:

One of the top classic albums of 1994!.......2007-06-09

This set of String Quartets achieved an instantaneous cult status from its first release. This ensemble gave these last Quartets a mercurial approach, filled with a very strong presence that never shadowed its intrinsic lyricism.

You should notice that, in what concerns to intensity and vibrant expression we should get back to the early fifties when the majestic Konzerthaus gave us top notch performances of the whole corpus of these String quartets.

So I don't hesitate for a second at the moment to recommend you to acquire this set, which is absolutely indispensable in you collection, not only because its radiant significance, but we are talking about one of the great moments of the Western musical literature of any time.

A true musical gem!