The New Budapest Quartet were formed in 1971 and it was not long before they had collected a number of prestigious competition prizes in Vienna, Rome and Budapest. They have collected golden opinions since then, though judging from the Gramophone Compact Disc Catalogue, would seem to have made few records. Their only current CD is of a Piano Quintet by Widor (Marco Polo/Harmonia Mundi, 11/89), which CH found ''perfectly serviceable if not much more than that''! Their Beethoven is a good deal better though I can imagine more strongly characterized performances. Mind you, I was complaining of over-projection from the Vermeer Quartet in Opp. 74 and 95, another of this month's records sent me for review (see below). There is nothing jet-set here, which is a relief.
Intonation and tonal blend are good and the sound is refreshingly free from the hard-edges favoured by some ensembles. All the same, these performances leave an impression of blandness partly because the dynamic range of the playing is compressed. Take, for example, the coda of the first movement of Op. 18 No. 1 (track 1 beginning at 9'08''), where fortissimo crotchets are followed four bars later by a pianissimo passage which is played mezzo forte, if not louder. Similarly in the Scherzo of Op. 18 No. 2, the fortissimo marking is not much different from the forte a few bars earlier and there are other instances elsewhere. Secondly, rhythms are not always articulated strongly, with enough spring or vitality (opening of the finale of Op. 18 No. 1). Yet there is no lack of imagination in the slow movement, which is well shaped and finely controlled even if it lacks poignancy and eloquence of the Vegh on Auvidis Valois. There are many things to admire: they play with humanity and are faithfully recorded, also there are decent pauses between movements and excellent notes. All the same they do not displace the Vegh or EMI's Alban Berg Quartet.'