I. Allegro
II. Andante
III. Allegretto
IV. Presto
(the 2nd quartet starts at 19:20)
The second string quartet of Mieczysław Weinberg was written in 1940 but Weinberg heavily revised the work over 40 years later. It was originally composed under the mentoring of his teacher Vassily Zolotaryov. The double opus number is due to the fact that it was originally given the number Op.3, but Weinberg rescored it for string orchestra as his First Chamber Symphony, Op.145, in 1987 and subsequently added revisions (also labelled as Op. 145) to the quartet.
It's in four movements where the opening two movements are both longer than the sum of the latter two combined (very Shostakovichian, or vice-versa).
It begins charmingly and merrily with a serenade-like, bright, skipping melody. After the exposition repeat, the development is highly contrapuntal, engaging and energetic. Weinberg makes the most out of little here as the music hovers around that opening phrase, moving away from it and then returning to it skilfully. Towards the end the instrumentation becomes sparser and the soundscape darker until it concludes rather quietly.
The 2nd movement, Andante, is a more lugibrious affair. It begins with taut, tense music supported by pizzicato as the uptight melody plays over the top. Eventually the pizzicato ceases and the violin takes over for an extended period. Gradually a rhythm starts to emerge from the turmoil as new unrelated material emerges, as in some strange trio, acting almost as a scherzo to the work. Nearing the end of the movement, darker, more introspective music emerges before some held chords and gentle pizzicato take us out.
The 3rd movement, Allegretto, begins quietly, mysteriously and in subdued fashion. It certainly doesn't seem like an Allegretto but that's arguably Weinberg's genius at work. There's strained dialogue in this sparse landscape as though in hushed, serious conversation. The main theme, consisting of 6 notes is in an almost call and response pattern and dominates the music. There's little more to say about this intriguing movement other than it all concludes quietly and I really enjoy it's quirky properties and simplicity. It has a quality about it that's very appealing to my ears (but I'm not sure why).
The Presto finale, opens giddily. It's the shortest movement of the work and a stark contrast to the previous 2 movements. All starts playfully and energetically, with the violin punctuated by pizzicato to add further jollity. The tempo persists and the music barrels on with piercing violins punctuating the boisterous pizzicati. It's an odd, unexpected and idiomatic conclusion to this quartet and a final frenzied coda is concluded by terse violin gestures, before 2 plucked chords close the work out.
So there you go. A fine quartet and if you like early Shosty quartets (especially 3 and 6) you'll find loads to like here in this quality music.
Sadly there are only 3 recordings available of this work. The good news is that they are all, at least, of a high quality.
The Arcadia Quartet's recording is the newest of the bunch and, if judged on sound alone, would be top of the shop. However, for as good as the acoustic is they just don't push hard enough for me. This is particularly noteworthy in the finale where the are also a little too sluggish from the off. The slow, inner movements are played beautifully and are a real pull but that finale doesn't have the grunt needed for me. Still a very worthy effort.
The Danel Quartet keep note values shorter than the Arcadia and play with a bit more fire and rhythmic attack. They also have a little more forward momentum that makes this a valuable addition to your collection. We're it not for the recording below this would be a first choice.
However, the Silesian Quartet, yet again, prove to be wonderful champions of Weinberg's quartets. They have that ability whether in slow or quick movements to get the right tempi, to phrase intelligently and to play with glorious articulation. Rhythms are so marvellously taut that the 1st movement intrigues throughout. The allegretto is really well carried off and the finale is hands-down the best of these three recordings, by far, with more volatility, raw power and yet better captures the idiocyncracies of Weinberg's unique ending. Easily my top recommendation for this quartet.
www.talkclassical.com
II. Andante
III. Allegretto
IV. Presto
The second string quartet of Mieczysław Weinberg was written in 1940 but Weinberg heavily revised the work over 40 years later. It was originally composed under the mentoring of his teacher Vassily Zolotaryov. The double opus number is due to the fact that it was originally given the number Op.3, but Weinberg rescored it for string orchestra as his First Chamber Symphony, Op.145, in 1987 and subsequently added revisions (also labelled as Op. 145) to the quartet.
It's in four movements where the opening two movements are both longer than the sum of the latter two combined (very Shostakovichian, or vice-versa).
It begins charmingly and merrily with a serenade-like, bright, skipping melody. After the exposition repeat, the development is highly contrapuntal, engaging and energetic. Weinberg makes the most out of little here as the music hovers around that opening phrase, moving away from it and then returning to it skilfully. Towards the end the instrumentation becomes sparser and the soundscape darker until it concludes rather quietly.
The 2nd movement, Andante, is a more lugibrious affair. It begins with taut, tense music supported by pizzicato as the uptight melody plays over the top. Eventually the pizzicato ceases and the violin takes over for an extended period. Gradually a rhythm starts to emerge from the turmoil as new unrelated material emerges, as in some strange trio, acting almost as a scherzo to the work. Nearing the end of the movement, darker, more introspective music emerges before some held chords and gentle pizzicato take us out.
The 3rd movement, Allegretto, begins quietly, mysteriously and in subdued fashion. It certainly doesn't seem like an Allegretto but that's arguably Weinberg's genius at work. There's strained dialogue in this sparse landscape as though in hushed, serious conversation. The main theme, consisting of 6 notes is in an almost call and response pattern and dominates the music. There's little more to say about this intriguing movement other than it all concludes quietly and I really enjoy it's quirky properties and simplicity. It has a quality about it that's very appealing to my ears (but I'm not sure why).
The Presto finale, opens giddily. It's the shortest movement of the work and a stark contrast to the previous 2 movements. All starts playfully and energetically, with the violin punctuated by pizzicato to add further jollity. The tempo persists and the music barrels on with piercing violins punctuating the boisterous pizzicati. It's an odd, unexpected and idiomatic conclusion to this quartet and a final frenzied coda is concluded by terse violin gestures, before 2 plucked chords close the work out.
So there you go. A fine quartet and if you like early Shosty quartets (especially 3 and 6) you'll find loads to like here in this quality music.
Sadly there are only 3 recordings available of this work. The good news is that they are all, at least, of a high quality.
The Arcadia Quartet's recording is the newest of the bunch and, if judged on sound alone, would be top of the shop. However, for as good as the acoustic is they just don't push hard enough for me. This is particularly noteworthy in the finale where the are also a little too sluggish from the off. The slow, inner movements are played beautifully and are a real pull but that finale doesn't have the grunt needed for me. Still a very worthy effort.
The Danel Quartet keep note values shorter than the Arcadia and play with a bit more fire and rhythmic attack. They also have a little more forward momentum that makes this a valuable addition to your collection. We're it not for the recording below this would be a first choice.
However, the Silesian Quartet, yet again, prove to be wonderful champions of Weinberg's quartets. They have that ability whether in slow or quick movements to get the right tempi, to phrase intelligently and to play with glorious articulation. Rhythms are so marvellously taut that the 1st movement intrigues throughout. The allegretto is really well carried off and the finale is hands-down the best of these three recordings, by far, with more volatility, raw power and yet better captures the idiocyncracies of Weinberg's unique ending. Easily my top recommendation for this quartet.
Merl's Blogged String Quartet and String Quintet...
As some of you are aware I started blogging my recommended string quartet recordings a while back as I didn't want to lose them in the Weekly String Quartet thread. However, blogging on TC has many limitations and there was no way to link all my posts in one place without the page disappearing...
www.talkclassical.com
