Beethoven String Quartets
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Ludwig van Beethoven
Label: Nimbus
Magazine Review Date: 6/1994
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 72
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: NI5382
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| String Quartet No. 1 |
Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer
Brandis Qt Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer |
| String Quartet No. 3 |
Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer
Brandis Qt Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer |
Author: Robert Layton
The Brandis Quartet recorded a number of Beethoven quartets in the mid-1980s including the E minor Rasumovsky, Op. 59 No. 2 (Harmonia Mundi, 12/91). They are a thoughtful and sensitive ensemble who leave plenty of time for musical points to register and phrases to breathe. There is no glamorization or any attempt to draw attention to their own virtuosity—which, it goes without saying, is considerable. I wrote of their E minor Rasumovsky that it was good to hear it ''without high-powered, chromium-plated tonal burnish or excessive brilliance and attack''. Much the same can be said of its companions on this Nimbus CD; they are straightforward yet well characterized, selfless but not faceless performances phrased with care and intelligence and with very well judged tempos.
They do not observe a first-movement repeat in Op. 59 No. 1 and the very opening phrase is presented a trifle tentatively, but the reading has the flow of a good concert performance. To be frank the Tokyo Quartet are hard to beat in the opening movement and really have the measure of its stature. Still, the Brandis version can hold its head high among the best without displacing any. They consistently find the tempo giusto in Op. 59 No. 3 and are not in the least interested in rushing the final fugue off its feet. The Nimbus acoustic has no lack of air round the instruments (though they are a bit forward) but is just a shade cool and glassy on my speakers. Admirable, but at full price not to be preferred to the Quartetto Italiano (Philips mid-price) or any of the others listed above.'
They do not observe a first-movement repeat in Op. 59 No. 1 and the very opening phrase is presented a trifle tentatively, but the reading has the flow of a good concert performance. To be frank the Tokyo Quartet are hard to beat in the opening movement and really have the measure of its stature. Still, the Brandis version can hold its head high among the best without displacing any. They consistently find the tempo giusto in Op. 59 No. 3 and are not in the least interested in rushing the final fugue off its feet. The Nimbus acoustic has no lack of air round the instruments (though they are a bit forward) but is just a shade cool and glassy on my speakers. Admirable, but at full price not to be preferred to the Quartetto Italiano (Philips mid-price) or any of the others listed above.'
Beethoven String Quartets
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