Ravel's String Quartet in F major is customarily paired with the Debusssy
string quartet, although with greater minutes available on a cd in recent
years, a third quartet is often programmed as well.  The pairing of Ravel
and Faure might not be the norm, but it is not all that unusual.  Further,
I know of two cd's (Biddulph & Pavane) which have the Ravel, Faure, *and*
the Debussy.  With that trivia out of the way, I recently acquired two cd's
with the Ravel and Faure coupling:

Quatuors Rosamonde - Pierre Verany 799052 (1999 - 55'56").
Ad Libitum Quartet - Naxos 8554722 (1999 - 56'35").

As you can see, neither disc is generous in playing time and could have
added another string quartet.  I purchased the Pierre Verany disc after
reading a review in ARG indicating that both works were performed superbly.
The Naxos price led me to acquire the Ad Libitum disc.  Initially, I was
just going to listen to the new acquisitions, but I decided that, although
I might prefer one to the other, they could both not be worth much in
comparison to alternative recordings.  So I located three discs for
comparison purposes:

Faure - Miami String Quartet (w/Saint-Saens) - Conifer 51291 (1997)
Ravel - Alban Berg Quartet (w/Debussy) - EMI 47347 (1986)
Ravel - Orpheus Quartet (w/Debussy & Dutilleux) - Channel Classics 3892 (1992)

I want to emphasize that this is not intended as a survey of the Ravel
or Faure string quartets on record; it's an evaluation of the Naxos and
Pierre Verany recordings with a little help from my friends.  I also should
emphasize that I do not consider myself particularly well versed in either
the Ravel or Faure idioms.  I just love string quartets from the early
1900's.  I have known the Ravel for many years and consider it my favorite
string qaurtet from that time period.  Just in the past three years, I have
been increasingly listening to the Faure chamber works.  So, please accept
this review as simply coming from one who loves string quartets.

Coupling the Ravel and Faure String Quartets has much to recommend it.
Faure was a teacher of Ravel's, and they had a strong admiration and
affection for one another.  When Ravel wrote his string quartet in 1903,
he dedicated it to Faure who didn't write his string quartet for another
twenty years; it was his last composition.

Ravel's string quartet comes from his years as a student at the Paris
Conservatoire, although he was over 25 years old at the time.  Ravel and
the leadership of the Conservatoire did not agree on the worth of Ravel's
early compositions which included, by the way, Pavane pour une infante
defunte for piano and Jeux d'eau; they were not considered to be well
written.  Of course, we can now look back and realize that "not well
written" really conveyed the message of lack of understanding.  So, Ravel
had to endure a negative musical environment in academia.  In 1905, Faure
was handed the post of Directorship of the Conservatoire, but that couldn't
erase the years of unjust critcism and rejection.  And even Faure had
some trouble with Ravel's works.  After hearing the string quartet, Faure
advised Ravel to re-write the last movement because "it is a failure".
Debussy advised Ravel to change not one note of the work.  Everybody has
an opinion.

Although I haven't the slightest idea if I would be able to recognize
them, the Ravel String Quartet's movements are connected through 9 related
motifs that provide the basic unity of the work.  Taking my cue from list
member Deryk Barker, I'll try as the review progresses to make connections
among the four movements.  In addition to being a cyclic work, the first
movement's initial theme reappears in the last song of Sheherazade.

Ravel's first movement, Allegro moderato-Tres doux, contains some of
the most tender, lyrical, and poignant music one could encounter.  The
initial theme has a nobility of character clothed in serenity.  The mood
then becomes more animated and even agitated for a short period.  But, the
tenderness returns with the second theme, pianissimo tres expressif, which
is absolutely gorgeous and evokes mystery and elusiveness.  This second
theme begins with the first violin and viola in unison, a magical passage
to be savored.  In the middle of the movement there is heightened drama,
tension, and urgency.  The ending is serene and hushed.  So overall, the
two themes constitute the foundation of the movement, with some excellent
drama interspersed for contrast.

The Ad Libitum Quartet gives the slowest performance.  Although
that feature initially turned me off, additional listenings gave me an
appreciation of their pacing.  Their reading is very soft toned in the
two themes, particularly in the second where they are hushed and quite
lovely.  But it's the drama where the group excels and easily surpasses the
Rosamonde Quartet and the other two as well.  There's great strength and
urgency displayed in these passages.  My only reservation is that I noticed
an Eastern European flavor to their performance.  It sounds fine to me, but
I suppose it should sound French.

The Rosamonde Quartet excel in the second theme with a radiant warmth
that's enveloping.  They play the entire movement in a warm fashion, and
I think they would do a great job with Dvorak.  And they're very good with
Ravel, although they aren't strong on urgency.

The Alban Berg Quartet provides outstanding first and second themes.
The first violin is perfectly distanced from the other instruments and is
beautifully detailed.  The overall peformance is "cool" and cosmopolitan,
yielding nothing in tenderness and emotional depth.  In their hands, the
nobility of the first theme is stunning and their second theme is as
poignanat as I could hope for.  But, they can't match the Ad Libitum
Quartet for drama and urgency.  The sound stage is quite bright with
low bass response, a perfect atmosphere for the Alban Berg style.

The Orpheus Quartet is not competitive in the first movement.  Their
initial theme sounds rushed and somewhat disorganized; nobility goes out
the door.  The second theme is well done but nothing special, and the same
goes for the dramatic passages.  I would describe their performance as
having an amorphous quality; perhaps this is an example of the
"international" style I've been reading about for years.

Summing up, I prefer the Alban Berg's first movement, but I would not want
to part with either the Ad Libitum or Rosamonde Quartet versions.  The
performance of the Orpheus Quartet is a distant fourth in this company.

Don Satz
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