There are now plenty of recorded pairings of Janá∂ek’s two string quartets, in various versions. One, on Vol 4 of Supraphon’s ‘Janáček Unknown’ series, even uses the viola d’amore which, for linguistic rather than musical reasons, was his unwise first choice, wisely discarded. Others use the standard Czech published versions of 1945 and 1949; increasingly performers are now using the revised editions by Milan kampa, under whom the Romanian players of the Arcadia Quartet studied the works.

They are not afraid to take matters to the extremes which Janáček invites: the deliberately scratchy tone that seems to disrupt the mournful melody opening the third movement of the First Quartet; in the Second Quartet, barely audible viola pp (more like ppppp) flautando markings that almost literally seem to whistle like a flute; a strong contrast between the dancing lilt of the third movement and the rough peasant-dance stamp of the fourth; and, most striking of all, when Janáček mercilessly asks for all the instruments to play a ferocious discord as loudly as possible in the thin-toned area up near the bridge, and the product is scarcely music at all, just din. Nevertheless, the players relate these extremes to a bold but thoughtful performance of two remarkable works. They are strenuous performances, where other quartets, notably the Panocha and the marvellous Talich Quartet, seem to draw more strength without such strain from music of genius, but they are skilfully done.

The recording is vivid and immediate. The duration, not much over 43 minutes, is rather short measure, and other quartets have found various pieces to fill their records up.