Mimi Ezust writes:

>I've been hoping someone would record all of them!  ...
>
>Once upon a time, there was a Philips recording with the Quartetto Italiano
>doing a luscious and smooth performance of all the Brahms and Schumann
>quartets.  I loved that set.

Me too!  In fact, I have loved just about everything I've heard Quartetto
Italiano perform.  I still have the LP set Mimi mentions, and it's one of
the few vinyl holdings I still posses that I might consider setting up a
turntable for (but I'm just about certain I can avoid the temptation).

>Philips has reissued the Brahms on cd, but for some weird and whacky
>reason never (as far as I know) released the Schumanns.  If I knew who
>to yell at, believe me I would!

Me too.  Not only have they failed to reissue the Schumann, but they
failed to adequately inform me of the availability of the Brahms!  Damn
them.  Anyway, I now have my sights set on the Philips Duo release of the
QI Brahms.  As far as I can tell, Philips has only reissued the Beethoven,
Mozart, and Brahms sets (along with a few quartet collections on other
labels).  Other than the Schumann set, are there any others they owe us?

>...  They should be recorded by many different groups.  I think they are
>all fine!  I'd like to hear a very rhythmic and vigorous recording of the
>second quartet.

Then perhaps you'd like this new release by the St. Lawrence Quartet on
EMI.  Though they play quartets #1 & 3, if and when they decide to record
the second quartet their style might be just the thing you are looking for.
The playing is quite vigorous, though occasionally hard-edged.  I've only
listened to the disc twice, but I keep thinking of the Kronos Quartet.
Their sense of ensemble and blend is a lot better than the Kronos (and
demonstrates the style Kronos should aspire to, IMHO), but their energy
level (based, admittedly, on a single recording) is reminiscent.

>Schumann has great rhythmic surprises, funny accents in unexpected places,
>and meltingly beautiful melodies, rapid changes of mood, great emotional
>range.  These quartets deserve to be heard.  It always has shocked me that
>there are not more recordings available.

Me too (we have now established Mimi and I are identical twins
diabolically separated at birth).  I've been assisiting a collegue who
showed some interest in chamber music.  We've worked through Mozart and
Haydn (quartets and piano trios) but he was looking for smething "less
flowery", so we moved on to Beethoven (he decided he's a big Beethoven
fan), Schubert, Brahms, Borodin, and a couple of other less-well-known
romantics.  It was during this process I went to pick a recording or two
of the Schumann quartets that I realised, to my horror, that I didn't
have a single recording of any of the three in my collection.  Given my
admiration for Schumann, and the now ridiculous size of my colleciton,
this was even hard for me to believe.

I couldn't let this situation stand for long, so I immediately began
checking catalogs for available recordings.  I was much surprised to find
that the number of recordings of Schumann's quartets was extremely small,
and few (none?) complete sets available.  Well, the same week I took a
business trip to Pasadena, and is my wont I visited the local Tower - as
much to continue the death watch as anything else.  It turned out they had
the St. Lawrence CD on sale ($12.99, what a bargain) and another CD by the
Manfred Quartet on Pierre Verany (793051) mispriced at $14.99 so I grabbed
them both.  I think I prefer the Manfred's approach a little better (that
CD has won a number of awards in Europe), but I'm glad I have both.  Not
that either will keep me from wanting the Quartetto Italiano set, but at
least they will make the waiting more bearable.

>While you are waiting for the Schumann quartets, try the FANTASTIC Schumann
>piano trios.  There are three.  I am very partial to the older Beaux Arts
>cds, with Pressler, Cohen and Greenhouse.  It's a Philips two-fer including
>the Piano Quartet and the Piano Quintet!  (Philips classics 456 323-2).

Second that recommendation.  I've had the piano quartet/quintet disc since
it first appeared on CD, and I continue to return to it frequently.

>Since I'm being so wordy, I might as well mention the very fine volume
>of Schubert Chambermusic (Edited by Clara Schumann!) containing the Three
>piano trios, the three string quartets, the piano quartet and the piano
>quintet, published by Dover.

Of course, Mimi means the Schumann chamber music set from Dover.  I know
because she told me herself.

Dave
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