I had initated this thread by asking for list member opinions of the
Louis Glass string quartets recording on Dacapo.  Although there were
no responses, I still bought the disc and am very glad I did so.

Louis Glass (1864-1936) was born in Copenhagen; his father was a composer
and piano teacher.  Louis was a very introspective child who tended to live
in his own world.  As a young adult, he ventured to other areas of Europe,
expanding his awareness of musical activities.  Glass spent some time in
Brussels and became enamored of Cesar Franck's music which influenced Louis
greatly.  It's probably best to say that the music of Louis Glass is of a
late-romantic nature with a few traces of dissonance and darkness.

Glass wrote four string quartets.  The Dacapo disc has his third quartet
in A minor and fourth quartet in F sharp minor.  The third quartet was
written in 1896 and revised in 1929.  The first movement allegro is a
beautiful movement having three subjects, one of them based on an
absolutely gorgeous melody which clearly reveals the capacity of Glass to
write attractive music; I've played this movement many times, and it has
not worn out its welcome.  The second movement is a brief and attractive
allegretto which concludes with that gorgeous melody from the first
movement.  I tend to see the second movement as an intermezzo leading
into the slow movement.  The third movement andante is another beautiful
and well structured piece depicting serenity.  With the fourth movement,
matters change appreciably as Glass provides a mostly eerie and trembling
allegro which is quite effective and distinct.  Overall, the quartet in A
minor is a gem.  It's not as advanced or modern as the typical Nielsen
string quartet, but it shows a composer of high inspiration and craft.

The String Quartet in F sharp minor was first performed in 1907.  it is a
relatively long work of over 45 minutes.  The first movement allegro has
more angst and depth than the allegro of the third quartet.  The second
movement is a heart-felt adagio of substantial beauty.  The third movement
is a scherzo which the liner notes describe as "almost frivolous"; I do
detect some note-spinning in this movement, and it's the least inspired
movement of either quartet.  But, the last movement is a highly inspired
and multi-layered allegro which provides an excellent finish to a very fine
recording.

The Zapolski Quartet is the performing ensemble, and they are very goood;
I remember them from their Chandos recording of volume 1 of the Nielsen
string quartets.  Recorded sound is outstanding - as good as it gets.
The catalog number is 8.224048.

Don's Conclusion:  Strongly recommended to listeners who like Romantic-era
or late-romantic string quartets.  An added bonus of getting the disc will
be just about the best recorded sound available for a string chamber
performance.

Don Satz
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