It's hard to know what to say about the Prazak Quartet's cycle of the complete string quartets of Beethoven. Recorded between 1999 and 2003, they do sound lovely: warm, fresh, close, and vivid. And played by what is surely one of the finest of contemporary Czech quartets, they are delightfully performed: clean, clear, light, and lucid. But what is it about the Prazak's approach to Beethoven that makes them worth seeking out? The ensemble is tight but relaxed. The tone is strong but sweet. The tempos are neither too fast nor too slow. The interpretations are enthusiastic but balanced. Everything is where it's supposed to be doing what it's supposed to do but nothing really registers - not the radiant beauty of the opening Allegro from the D major Quartet, Op. 18/3, nor the passionate expressivity of the closing Adagio from the B flat major Quartet, Op. 18/6; not the enormous potency of the closing Theme russe from the F major Quartet, Op. 59/1, nor the immense mystery of the central Molto adagio from the E minor Quartet, Op. 59/2; not the unfathomable profundity of the "Heiliger Dankgesang" from the A minor Quartet, Op. 132, nor the intimate humanity of the Cavatina from the B flat major Quartet, Op. 130. Fans of earlier recorded cycles of Beethoven's quartets performed by the Czech Smetana or Talich quartets may want to hear what a later Czech group does with the music - but many, perhaps most, other people won't. ~ James Leonard, Rovi
No comments:
Post a Comment