Whether or not you like everything that the Carmina Quartet does (and in the first movement of the Debussy there are moments where they press ahead just a little too impetuously, I think) they play as if they mean every note and phrase. There is not the faintest touch of routine or of that mechanized narcissism that afflicts some high flying ensembles. The Carmina made a strong impression in their recent set of the Szymanowski quartets which won a Gramophone Award last year—and rightly!
Their dynamic contrasts are strong without ever being excessively self-conscious; their narrative style grips the listener (or at least did this one) from beginning to end, and they play with impeccable finish and ensemble. Indeed the slow movement of the Debussy matches both the Melos on DG and the Quartetto Italiano on Philips in terms of finesse and atmosphere. I don't know whether I warm to the way in which they move ahead in the Scherzo of the Ravel (fig. A)—at each return of the theme marked bien chante but this again is a small matter. The recording is less successful than the Szymanowski, it has the clarity and presence of the latter but not quite as much warmth. In fact the top suffers from a touch of glare. All the same even in a highly competitive field (there must be about 20 versions of this coupling), this distinguished newcomer must be among the very best. '