Franz SCHUBERT (1797–1828)
String Quartet No. 14 in D minor, D810 ‘Death and the Maiden’ [38:17]
String Quartet No. 8 in B flat major, D112 [29:02]
Wiener Konzerthaus Quartet
rec. live, 16 September 1943, Mozart Saal, Vienna (D810), 23 February 1953, Studio RFT, Paris (D112)
MELOCLASSIC MC4004 [67:20]
The Weiner Konzerthaus Quartet, formed in January 1934, was
the brainchild of Anton Kamper (1st Violin) and Erich Weiss (viola),
both principals in the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. They promptly enlisted Karl
Maria Titze on second violin and Franz Kwarda on cello. There was a chemistry
between all four from the start, and in March of that year the new group performed
in public for the first time. This led to a broadcast of Franz Schmidt’s
String Quartet. They were successfully launched! In the mid to late thirties
all four players transferred to the Vienna Philharmonic and became known as
the Wiener Konzerthaus Quartet, giving a subscription series each season for
the Konzertgesellschaft in the Mozart Saal. Their first series included the
Bruckner Quintet as part of a Bruckner Festival, for which they were joined
by Karl Stumpf on second viola. They began to tour, visiting Britain in 1950
and appearing at London’s Wigmore Hall.
Their golden decade was undoubtedly the fifties. Eventually, the original
line up began to disperse when Kwarda developed rheumatism and Ludwig Beinl
stepped into the breach. Titze was replaced by Walter Weller in 1960, and
Weiss died in 1962, with Franz Handschke taking his place. Kamper ultimately
retired in 1968.
The two broadcast airings here, set down 10 years apart, feature the original
line up in performances of two Schubert quartets. The group recorded a complete
Schubert quartet cycle which has been reissued by Preiser Records. Listening
to these radio versions, it’s evident that they have these works fully
at their fingertips, and have a natural empathy for this music. I was amazed
at how modern they sound, their playing devoid of those ‘expressive’
portamentos that were fashionable at the time. Their Death and the Maiden
is exceptionally fine. The beginning is intensely dramatic, with the opening
gestures making a striking impact. The players invest the music with drama
and energy. The slow movement, a theme and variations on a Schubert song which
lends its name to the work, is intimate and ravishingly played. There’s
profound sadness in the theme, and this melancholy spills over into the variations
which follow. The Scherzo provides some rhythmic contrast, with the finale
driven and dispatched with scintillating panache. The early and lesser-known
String Quartet No. 8 in B flat major provides a suitable contrast. Light hearted
and full of youthful exuberance, its slow movement’s ‘Mozartian’
feel is here addressed with elegance and refinement.
These well-preserved documents have been ably restored and emerge with warmth
and intimacy. Tully Potter’s authoritative annotations make for a fascinating
read. I see that Scribendum have recently released the ensemble’s commercial
discography on 22 CDs. On the back of this delightful release I’m tempted
to explore further.
Stephen Greenbank
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