Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828)
String Quartet No. 14 in D minor Death and the Maiden, D810 (1824)
[41:58]
String Quartet No. 13 in A minor Rosamunde, D804 (1824) [36:10]
String Quartet No.15 in G major, D887 (1826) [51:22]
Artemis Quartet (Natalia Prischepenko (first violin); Gregor Sigl (second
violin); Friedemann Weigle (viola); Eckart Runge (cello))
rec. 27, 28, 31 May, 1 June 2009 (D887); 30 June, 1 July 2009 (D804); 5-8
July 2009 (D810), Siemensvilla, Berlin, Germany
VIRGIN CLASSICS 6025122 [78:23 + 51:35]
The Artemis Quartet is one of an elite group of string quartets on the world
stage today. I would rank them alongside the Emerson, Takács, Henschel
and Pacifica. For Virgin Classics the Berlin based quartet’s recent
series of the complete Beethoven quartets has been a splendid example of their
prowess. This latest release comprises Schubert’s final three and probably
greatest string quartets. This is not the first Schubert disc that the Artemis
has recorded. At the Teldex Studio, Berlin in 2007 they successfully recorded
the Quartettsatz D703 with the C minor Andante fragment and
the String Quintet in C, D956 (with cellist Truls Mørk) on Virgin
Classics 5021132.
The brooding String Quartet No. 13 D804, composed in February 1824
in the shadow of Schubert’s fatal illness, is one of the greatest ever
written. Known as the Rosamunde it reuses themes from the incidental
music to the unsuccessful play of the same name. In the extended opening Allegro
the Artemis provides a liberal degree of melancholic yearning exposing an
undercurrent of brooding mystery. A cultivated piece of writing, the highly
lyrical Andante con moto presents a tenderly lilting melody that pervades
the score. In the Menuetto the players establish a mood of brooding
wistfulness - nearly melancholic. The Hungarian folk-inflected Finale,
so refined and joyfully optimistic, is variegated with earnest episodes.
My favourite account of the Rosamunde Quartet is the 1996 release played
on period instruments by the eminent Quatuor Mosaïques on Auvidis Astrée
E 8580 (c/w D87). A compelling release it features exceptional playing where
the personality of each player comes across so engagingly. In addition I often
play the highly satisfying account from the Italian Quartet released on Philips
446 163-2 (c/w D810; D703; D887). Another recording that keeps growing on
me is the sensitive and beautifully played version from the Mandelring Quartet.
Recorded in 2004 at Klingenmünster, Germany this is on Audite (SACD)
92.524 (c/w D353).
The String Quartet No. 14 Death and the Maiden is one of the most famous
quartets; a powerful work full of melodic invention. Composed in March 1824
right after the Rosamunde Quartet this had to wait until 1831
for its publication three years after Schubert’s death. Given Schubert’s
grave health problems not surprisingly the theme of death is at the heart
of the score. At times the writing is sombre but it never feels morbid. The
title Death and the Maiden stems from material taken from Schubert’s
early song setting Der Tod und das Mädchen D.531 to a text by
Matthias Claudius which appears in the Andante con moto as the source
of the theme and set of variations. In the opening Allegro there’s
fire, energy and intense concentration conveying an unsettling mood like a
dark drama heavy with sinister foreboding. Their highly effective playing
of the theme and six variations in the second movement Andante con moto
is vibrantly characterised. Opening like a funeral march I found the theme
suffused with melancholy and despair. At the third variation 6:24-8:14 the
players release their fury sawing away furiously. At 10:59-11:28 in the fifth
variation the weight and intensity of the playing is cranked up yet further.
In the coda of variation sixth I love the way the music fades peacefully -
almost ethereally. Fresh and squally with a distinct Slavic feel the Scherzo
is free from the melancholic tension of the first two movements. Serving as
a respite at 1:27-3:06, a peaceful episode helps soothe the soul. A generally
sunny Tarantella in a relentless 6/8 is played robustly by the Artemis
with near breathless urgency yet without any sense of loss of control.
The extremely popular Death and the Maiden Quartet has numerous versions
in the catalogue. My primary recommendation is from the Italian Quartet. Remarkable
for their sheer technical excellence and impressive imagination their 1965
Swiss account is on Philips 446 163-2 (c/w D804; D703; D887). One of their
earliest recordings is the Henschel Quartet’s exhilarating 1997 Munich
account. It is well worth hearing on Arte Nova 47321 59220 2 (c/w D87) - later
reissued on Arte Nova Classics ANO 59220 (c/w D87). I also admire the passionate
account from the Hagen Quartet recorded in 2009 at the Siemensvilla, Berlin
on Deutsche Grammophon 471 740-2 (c/w D667).
Completed in 1826, the String Quartet No. 15, D887 was Schubert’s
last string quartet to be composed. I have read that Schubert took only eleven
days to write it. Massive in scale the intense G major Quartet was
a radical change for Schubert with its unconventional tonality and frequent
unsettling and aggressive character. The score had to wait until 1850 for
its premiere and was published posthumously the next year. At fifty-one minutes
the G major is often overlooked both on record and in the recital hall in
favour of the shorter preceding Death and the Maiden and Rosamunde.
The latter are shorter, probably more immediately appealing lyrically with
the distinct advantage of having attractive titles.
Schubert’s forthright and persistent use of tremolo is an effect
frequently employed here. The Quartet is given a gripping and stimulating
performance by the Artemis. Opening with an Allegro molto moderato
that takes them twenty-one minutes to encompass the Artemis demonstrate rapt
concentration in this impassioned music. There’s a ferocity - almost
violence - about this writing. Introduced by a plaintive song-like cello line
the Andante’s dramatic and unsettlingly tragic writing feels
symphonic in character. Playing with remarkable rhythmic drive and relentless
vigour in the Mendelssohnian Scherzo the Artemis reveals a near repugnant
edge to the writing. At 2:40-5:39 the soothing qualities of the amiable Ländler-like
trio section come as a welcome relief. In the final Rondo, Finale
a rather obsessive near Tarantella 6/8 propels the music valiantly
forward. Played with a heady vitality Schubert’s quicksilver modulations
are rather unsettling providing a curiously Haydnesque mocking quality.
This Artemis performance can stand alongside the wonderfully expressive 1977
Swiss account from the Italian Quartet on Philips 446 163-2 (c/w D810; D804;
D703). The Lindsays offer a highly intense and characterful interpretation
recorded at the Bishopsgate Hall, London. Originally released on ASV CDDCA661
I also have the account as part of the Lindsay’s excellent 4-disc Schubert
collection on Sanctuary Classics Resonance CD RSB 403 (c/w D956, D810, D703,
D804, D112). In addition I also like to play the captivating 2010 account
from the Kuss Quartet - recorded at the SiemensVilla, Berlin on Onyx 4066
(c/w Berg String Quartet, Op. 3).
I did think that at only fifty-one minutes an earlier Schubert quartet from
the teenage Schubert could have been accommodated on disc two.
The Artemis Quartet with their gripping and responsive playing do Schubert
and their own reputation proud on this Virgin Classics release.
Michael Cookson
Gripping and responsive.
Masterwork Index: Schubert string quartets ~~ Death & The Maiden quartet