William Jenks writes:

>I close with a request for Dave or others so inclined.  Please recommend a
>few "essential" 20th century chamber works and a recording or two of each.
>I'd be interested in sampling what he and others think of as truly
>excellent modern stuff.

For me, this is a somewhat torturous exercise, even if I limit my comments
to string quartets (and I will for the most part).  Whereas in the period
1750-1900 (at least from my 20th-century perspective) there are so many
outstanding works for string quartet it's hard to choose, I find I have
nearly the opposite problem when it comes to modern pieces.  Therefore,
there are probably others far more qualified than I to judge what is truly
excellent.  That's not what makes it so difficult, however.  The problem is
that, though I am hard pressed to think of more than a few string quartets
that meet or exceed my personal excellence threshold, there are a multitude
of works that are interesting, entertaining, and completely worthwhile even
if few would argue that they are masterpieces.

When it comes to music I like (whether it be classical, jazz, new age,
pop, or rock; let's concentrate on classical for now), I tend towards the
conservative.  I didn't plan it this way, it's just that at the end of
the day, when I compare the pile of stuff I like to the pile I don't, the
best way to characterize the difference is that there is a tendency to
more traditionally-oriented works.  The very edge of what I like in string
quartets seems to be Shostakovich and Bartok.  Though I've been through the
complete Shostakovich cycle a few times now, and there are some wonderful
moments, in general his quartets fail to connect (though the symphonies and
other orchestral works appeal a great deal, even those that are not widely
admired, such as the "Leningrad").  I like Bartok's music in general,
though I *hated* the quartets the first couple of times I heard them (I had
a similar reaction to the piano concertos).  They are growing on me now,
though, and I suspect that by the time my turn to shuffle off this mortal
coil arrives, I may even be a fan.

But what else?  As I alluded to earlier, I have recordings of more
than 600 different quartets in my collection.  I should point out that I
don't believe it's possible intimately "know" that many works without a
lifetime of devoted study.  I was somewhat surprised to find that nearly
30% of those 600 were written in the 20th century, so I must have found
quite a number of works that appeal to my conservative tastes.  I'll
mention a few recordings I think should be in the collection of any quartet
enthusiast.  Please keep in mind that as my collection ages, the number of
recordings that are out-of-print becomes large.  Particular recordings may
be available in alternative couplings on reissues, or not at all.  I did
not take the time to investigate the availability of these recordings.  If
I list it here, I consider it to be a good-to-excellent CD and recommend
it.

Let's start with the British composers.  I find Robert Simpson's string
quartets (I believe there are 15) consistently disappointing, and I haven't
uncovered much to like there, though the Delme Quartet does what sounds
like a great job (on Hyperion) and many of these releases have received
enthusiastic reviews.  Simpson was definitely a major quartet composer, and
his works should be sampled.  Edward Elgar (1918) and William Walton (1947)
both wrote a single quartet, and neither is played nearly enough.  I have
the Gabrieli String Quartet recording on Chandos (8474), and claim it is a
"must have".  The Delme Quartet has recorded Frank Bridge's second quartet
(1915) for Chandos (8391) which is very interesting, as is the third
quartet (1927) coupled with Walton's quartet played by the Endellion String
Quartet on Virgin (791196).  The four quartets by Edmund Rubbra (1933,
1951, 1963, 1977) played by the Sterling String Quartet on Conifer (51260)
are powerful works that impressed me on first hearing, and continued
listening has revealed a wealth of musical wonders, reminiscent of Brahms
and Reger.  Mentioned in another thread, the first two string quartets by
Rutland Boughton (both written in 1923) played by the Rasumovsky Quartet
on Hyperion (66936) are surprisingly effective and beautiful works.  The
symphonies and tone poems of Arnold Bax have always been among my favorite
20th-century works, but his chamber music has taken longer to grow on me.
Both the first quartet, played by the English String Quartet on Chandos
(8391), and the second played by the Mistry Quartet (8795), are astringent
works with plenty of dissonance, Likewise, Malcolm Arnold's quartets (1949,
1975) are more esoteric and less accessible than many of his better known
works (I have the McCapra Quartet recording on Chandos 9112).  William
Alwyn's two string quartets have also been released by Chandos (9219)
played by the Quartet of London.  Alwyn was an exceedingly lyrical
composer, and that is reflected in these works.  Last, but certainly not
least, I've always been amazed at how little known are the chamber works
of Vaughan Williams.  I don't have a current Opus here in front of me,
but there are typically at most a handful of available recordings of his
two string quartets (1908, 1944).  I have the English String Quartet on
Unicorn-Kanchana (9076).  I should also mention a charming release of Ernst
Moeran's two string quartets (1914, 1921) along with his string trio on
Naxos (8.554079) played by the Maggini String Quartet.

Next, let's move on to composers from central Europe.  I may have missed
it, but Janacek's two quartets (1923, 1928) *must* be mentioned.  The 1928
"Intimate Letters" quartet is one of the "lost" 20th-century masterworks
I was bemoaning earlier.  I have the Talich Quartet recording on Calliope
(9699).  Ernst von Dohnanyi wrote some extremely effective chamber works,
including two string quartets (1899, 1906) which I have by the Kodaly
Quartet on Hungaroton (111853).  Vitezslav Novak wrote a few fascinating
chamber works, including a string quartet (1905) played by the Kubin
Quartet on Centaur (2191).   Dvorak's son in law, Josef Suk, wrote two
quartets (1896, 1911) played beautifully by the Suk Quartet on Supraphon
(111874-2).  Georges Enescu also wrote two quartets, and admirers of his
music should check out the performance by the Voces Quartet on Olympia
(413).

Moving west a bit, we have the French composers.  Debussy's quartet was
written in 1893, so it doesn't quite qualify, but Ravel's quartet (1903)
does, and so we now have at least two 20th-century quartets that qualify
as masterpieces.  I have the Orlando Quartet on Philips, which is good,
but I should probably check out a couple of other recordings.  But there's
more than just Ravel.  I've found the quartets of Vincent d'Indy to be
quite engaging.  Only the last of his three quartets was written in this
century (1929) and it can be found coupled with some of his other chamber
works from the same period played by the New Budapest Quartet on Marco Polo
(8.223691).  If you find these works to your liking, you can always explore
backward a little and get the Marco Polo disc of his first two quartets
(1890, 1897) played marvelously by the Kodaly Quartet (8.223140).  Alberic
Magnard should probably have a more significant reputation than he does,
and hopefully with renewed interest in his symphonies we'll get a more
diverse representation of his other works too.  In the meantime, I have
his quartet (1903) performed by the Artis Quartet Vienna on Accord
(220602).  A somewhat recent find are the quartets of a composer that is
all but unknown to me, Desire Paque.  He wrote at least seven quartets.  I
have a Koch disc (3-1378) of quartets #2, 5 & 7 (1894, 1902, 1921) played
by the Monnaie Royal Theatre String Quartet (which may get a prize for the
longest quartet name in recordings) that is absolutely intriguing.  I have
seen evidence that a second CD may exist (with #3, 4 & 6?) that I would
love to get, but apparently is not available in the US.  Gabriel Faure
isn't generally a composer we associate with the 20th century, but his late
string quartet (1924) is an amazing work.  I have an EMI set (CMS7625482)
played by the Quatuor Parrenin, with the piano quartets and quintets
(joined by Jean-Philippe Collard).  And, finally, that brings us to the
granddaddy of French Romanticism, Camille Saint-Saens.  Like Faure,
Saint-Saens waited until late in his career to take on the string quartet.
Neither of his two quartets (1899, 1919) are particularly striking, but
each has it's finer points.  There's been a boomlet of recordings of the
quartets lately, with at least four versions currently available.  I have
the Viotti Quartet on a long OOP Erato release (88243) which I love, but
I can also recommend the Equinox Quartet on Eroica (3005).

Let's head south; down to the neglected Italian provinces.  Though Italian
composers since the Baroque are best known for opera, a few have managed
to compose some outstanding chamber music as well.  I must say I'm a fan
of Gian Francesco Malipiero's music.  I know style is diffuse at times, but
I haven't heard any of his music that didn't communicate to me, including
his eight string quartets (1920-1964).  I have the Orpheus String Quartet
recording for Academy Sound & Vision LTD (457) and there is another set
available from Dynamic that I have not heard.  A relatively new discovery
for me is the music of Ildebrando Pizzetti.  His two string quartets (1906,
1933) are superbly played by the Lajtha Quartet on Marco Polo (8.223722).
I'm now on a hunt to find other instrumental music by this composer.  Marco
Polo does have another disc devoted to his violin sonata and piano trio
(8.223812) that is highly recommended, but I want more.

For a change of pace, let's bounce up to the great white north (no, I
don't mean Canada!).  Many of my favorite 20th-century northern composers
(Alfven, Madetoya, Sinding, Halvorsen, etc.) composed mostly orchestral
music.  But there are a few standouts among the others.  Of course, Jean
Sibelius' "Voces Intimae" quartet (1909) must be mentioned.  I have the
Gabrieli String Quartet on Chandos (8742) coupled with a fine rendition
of the earlier piano quintet, but this reminds me that I should try another
interpretation, just for grins.  Though Carl Nielsen wrote four quartets,
only the fourth and last was written in this century (1919), and I can
hardly believe one of our Nielsen zealots hasn't already mentioned it.
I have the Carl Nielsen String Quartet recording for Deutsche Grammophon
(431156) with all four quartets, the string quintet (1888) and the wind
quintet.  The BIS release by the Kontra String Quartet is also highly
recommended.  And finally, that brings us to the six quartets of Wilhelm
Stenhammar, the last three of which were written in this century (1909,
1910, 1916).  We have yet to get truly impressive interpretations of
these eclectic works, but Musica Sveciae - Caprice has released all six
quartets on three CDs.  The third and fourth are competently played by
the Gotland Quartet (602), but the fifth and six quartets played by the
Copenhagen String Quartet are standouts.

At this point, short day trip to Estonia is in order.  There we will
find the two quartets of the short-lived Rudolf Tobias (1899, 1902).
Strictly speaking, only one of these works is 20th-century, and just barely
at that.  The recording is by the Tallinn String Quartet on BIS (704), and
it currently has no competition.  When I first got this CD, I must have
listened to it a dozen times in a row, a rare occurrence for me.  These
are very effective works, and show what promise was lost when Tobias died
in 1918.

Let's swing over to Germany and Austria and see what survived the Second
Viennese School.  Influenced first by Mahler, then by Schoenberg, the four
quartets of Alexander von Zemlinsky (1896, 1914, 1924, 1936) show a gradual
evolution of style from the Brahmsian first to the relatively dissonant
last quartet with echos of serialism.  I have the complete set by the
LaSalle Quartet on Deutsche Grammophon (427421).  The music of Franz
Schmidt has come into its own in the 90s.  A relatively new CD containing
both of his quartets (1925, 1929) played by the Franz Schubert Quartet,
Vienna is available from Nimbus (5467).  The same quartet has also released
an even more-recent CD of the first string quartets from Erich Wolfgang
Korngold (1923) and Emil Nikolaus von Reznicek (1921) also on Nimbus
(5506).  Like Zemlinsky, Korngold's chamber music style changed with the
years, and I don't find a lot to like in the later quartets, but the first
quartet is a must-have.  No discussion would be complete without a mention
of Max Reger.  His third quartet (1903) is available in an insightful
reading by the Philharmonia Quartet Berlin on Thorofon (2116).  But perhaps
my favorite Reger CD (and I have a bunch of them) is the Joachim Quartet
performing the fourth (1909) and fifth (1911) quartets on Koch (310068).

Another day trip, this time to Poland, brings us to Alexandre Tansman whose
eight quartets (1922-1956) are available from Etcetera (2017) played by
the Silesian String Quartet.  A fascinating set; I haven't had a chance
to study these works yet, but I will.

On to Russia, where we find a large concentration of fine music.
With Shostakovich, the name the comes to mind most readily is Sergei
Prokofieff.  He wrote two quartets (1903, 1941).  I have an astonishing
recording of the Emerson String Quartet playing both works, along with the
violin sonata, on a Deutsche Grammophon release (431772).  It's hard to
imagine a more incisive reading.  I fell for the string quartets of Nicolai
Miaskovsky right away, whereas his symphonies have always left me cold.
As with the symphonies, he was a prolific composer of quartets composing a
total of thirteen (1910-1949) spanning his creative life.  For years it was
difficult to locate even a single recording, but Russian Disc has reissued
the extraordinary complete set by the Leningrad Taneyev Quartet, recorded
originally by Melodiya.  Though analog recordings from the mid-80s, the
re-masters are very good.  The only complaint is that the couplings on the
Russian Discs (11013, 11031-11035) do not match that found in the original
Melodiya set, so if you, like me, had one or more of the old Melodiyas, you
may have to do some significant duplications in order to get the whole set.
It's worth it though if you like this composer.  The much-ignored master
Alexander Glazunov also wrote beautifully for the string quartet.  Only
the last two of his seven quartets (1921, 1930) were composed in the 20th
century, and they are anything but "progressive" works.  The Shostakovich
Quartet recorded the complete set, along with the very special string
quintet (1892) and "Novelettes", for Melodiya in the mid-70s.  These have
been sporadically available from Olympia or Melodiya.  The release with
the sixth and seventh quartets is currently available from Olympia (526).
Alexander Taneyev wrote three quartets (all published in 1918) worthy of
attention on Olympia (543) played by the Talan Quartet.  And to round out
the Russians, I'll close with the two quartets of Dmitri Kabalevsky (1928,
1945) played by the Glazunov String Quartet on Olympia (293).  And this
ends the European leg of our tour.

Our final destination is the US.  Perhaps the best known quartet
by an American composer is that of Samuel Barber (1936), though it's
rarely heard in it's original instrumentation.  The slow movement Barber
orchestrated to become his famous Adagio.  The Emerson String Quartet plays
the original, along with the string quartets of Charles Ives (1896, 1913)
of which only the second I find to be an engaging work.  All well-recorded
on Deutsche Grammophon (435864).  Though I have all of the string quartets
by Walter Piston in long OOP releases from Northeastern, I havent been able
to find much to like in them.  However, the quartets of Randall Thompson
(1941, 1967) are a pleasant surprise, performed by the New Jefferson
Chamber Players on Bay Cities (1036).

And that just about completes our journey.  I feel compelled to add an
honorable mention to the many releases of little-known chamber works on
Marco Polo.  A short list of remarkable releases follows:

 Gretchaninov  Quartets #2 & 4  (1913, 1929)  Moyzes Quartet  8.223646
 Bella  Quartet (1936), String Quintet (1936)  Moyzes Quartet  8.223658
 Breton  Quartet (1910), Piano Trio (1891)  New Budapest Quartet  8.223745
 Hill  Quartets #5, 6 & 11 (1920, 1927, 1935)  Australian Quartet  8.223746
 Foote  Quartets #2 & 3 (1893, 1911), Piano Quintet Da Vinci Quartet  8.223875
 Fernstrom  Quartets #3, 6 & 8 (1931, 35, 38) Vlach Quartet Prague  8.225040

As promised, this has been a conservative tour.  But it does show that
there are quite a few works out there to investigate, even if you aren't
interesting in the more avant garde or experimental styles.

There, I've officially won the prize for the most occurrences of "string
quartet" in a single post.  Yeah.

Dave
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