String Quintet No. 1 in F major, Op. 88 [26:47]
String Quintet No. 2 in G major, Op. 111 [30:10]
Takács Quartet; Lawrence Power (viola)
rec. 19-22 May 2013, Concert Hall, Wyastone Estate, Monmouth
HYPERION CDA67900 [56:58]
The Brahms’ String Quintets have, in a sense, been relegated
to back boiler compared to the rest of his chamber works. They’re
infrequently programmed in concert and less recorded in the studio.
I’ve never understood why. For me, the G major Quintet,
Op. 111 is one of his finest compositions. The quintets were composed
eight years apart and they follow the Mozartean rather than the
Schubertian model, employing two violas rather than cellos. In
this way Brahms allowed himself greater scope to endow the first
viola part with more solo writing. He greatly admired the chamber
music of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert and felt that it
was his mission to carry on where they left off. He was so conscious
of the high standards set by his predecessors that he destroyed
many of his early string quartets.
Op. 88 was composed in Ischl near Salzburg, where Brahms spent
ten of his summers. He had the habit of disparaging his own compositions
on many occasions, yet with this work he wrote to his publisher
Simrock ‘you have never before had such a beautiful work
from me’. To his friend Clara Schumann, he praised it in
glowing terms.
It was Joachim in 1890, the dedicatee of the Violin Concerto,
who urged the composer to write a companion to go with the F major.
By this time, Brahms had been seriously contemplating retiring,
experiencing ‘burn-out’. To his friend Eusebius Mandyczewski,
he expressed his concerns and disillusion: ‘I’ve been tormenting
myself for a long time with all kinds of things … and nothing
will come of it … it’s not going the way it
used to. I’m just not going to do any more.’ At the
time, the G major Quintet was to be his farewell to composition.
This was not to be and, over the next seven years before his death
in 1897, he composed the Clarinet Trio and Quintet, the Opp. 116-119
piano pieces and the two Clarinet sonatas. Opus 111, like the
earlier work, was also composed in Ischl and given its premiere
by the Rose Quartet. Being on a larger scale with four movements
(the F major has three), the work displays virtuosic string writing,
outshining any of his other chamber works.
Etched in a gentler vein than its companion, this Op. 88 is fresh-sounding,
lyrical and heartfelt. After a couple of hearings, I felt that
this was music-making on the wing, such is the sense of spontaneity.
Each player has his moment in the sun, but there’s no domination
on the part of one instrumentalist. I get the feeling they’ve
lived with these works for a while. Inspiration and technical
excellence mark this out as a convincing performance.
Thick string textures can present problems in the opening movement
of the G major. Joachim, on first acquaintance with the score
thought the opening too orchestral, with the tremolos of the upper
strings threatening to drown out the exuberant soaring melody
of the solo cello. Brahms was not to be moved. It was a case of
composer knows best; he was determined that the opening should
stand as it is, knowing the effect he wanted to achieve.
It has to be one of the most impressive openings in all chamber
music. If you can pull this off the battle’s half won. The
Takács are punchy and arresting with them finding exactly
the right mood to convey the tension/relaxation of the drama.
In contrast, the Adagio which follows is veiled in melancholy
and darkness, conjuring up a world of shadows. A light, delicate
Allegretto comes next with a hint of wistfulness. In the finale,
the Takács Quartet capture the jaunty, buoyant mood enhancing
it with a taste of swagger.
Lawrence Power, who I greatly admire, is an excellent choice for
additional viola and blends well. The warm airy acoustic of the
Concert Hall, Wyastone confers an intimacy which is ideal. The
sometimes dense writing of Op. 111 can be revealed in all its
detail. Francis Potts provides scholarly notes in English, translated
into French and German. Once again Hyperion have come up with
another winner.
Stephen Greenbank
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