Zack Winestine wrote:

>Does anyone have any advice? Should I try the earlier, classic Budapest
>performances?

YES!  They are among the greatest performances I know.  Also the Busch
quartet.  The Hollywood Qt.  is also a *must* if you favour historical
performances.  I always recommend the 1967 Guarneri version (not the later
one).  And the Hungarians of course (both cycles)...sigh.  The Amadeus is
obligatory.

>I've been leaning towards getting the Italian Quartet performances, based
>on what I've read about them (I haven't actually heard any of them).

The Italians' Beethoven quartets are beautiful and elegant and have good
sound.  They're a bit too beautiful for my taste if you know what I mean.

>Since I listen to lots of LP's as well as CD's, recommendations of older
>recordings not available on CD are also fine.

The Koeckert Quartet!  The op.132 by the Collegium Aureum Quartet.  If you
find those somewhere you're lucky.  The list goes on.

Special advice:  DON'T go for the Enersons which everybody will advise you
to do.  I think they're baaaad.  ;)

Philip Peters