MENDELSSOHN String Quartets Op. 12 & 13
Austrian ensemble in Mendelssohn’s first quartets
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Felix Mendelssohn
Genre:
Chamber
Label: Hänssler
Magazine Review Date: 08/2012
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 51
Mastering:
Stereo
DDD
Catalogue Number: CD98 645
Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
String Quartet No. 1 |
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer Minetti Quartet |
String Quartet No. 2 |
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer Minetti Quartet |
Author: Caroline Gill
The fugue, for instance, around which the second movement of Op 13 centres, is an extraordinary example of Mendelssohn’s capacity for Beethovenian intricacy: here, as everywhere, the Minettis control a balance between the appreciation of its greatness and an apprehension of the fact that despite its brilliance, its composer was largely social and avuncular, rather than being the Romantic that Beethoven was, or as passionate as Schumann. Accordingly, they never play anything into the music that is not there. These are, after all, conservative quartets, quite at odds in that way in their reference to Beethoven. The Minettis’ clear lines and faultless ensemble keep the phrasing simple and transparent, and there is some heart-stoppingly well-controlled playing at the very top of the register in the first violin.
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