Of the various non-Hungarian composers who drew musical sustenance from
Bartok, none grew stronger, or more distinctive, than Munich-born Karl
Amadeus Hartmann. The present coupling juxtaposes Bartok’s innovatory
Fourth Quartet (1928) with a prize-winning quartet that Hartmann wrote
in 1933. Hartmann’s mistily harmonised Langsam opening turns violent
just before the four-minute mark. The muted second movement places the
cellist centre-stage (Bartok does the same in the middle movement of his
Fourth), while his finale – to be played con tutta forza – mirrors the
high-octane of Bartok’s fifth movement. Both composers were
significantly influenced by Berg’s Lyric Suite, a fact vividly reflected
in their imaginative approaches to string sound per se. Hartmann’s
language is introverted, questing, harmonically bold and economical. Not
a note is wasted (it rarely is), and the performance under review could
hardly be bettered. A first encounter made a strong impression, a
second was even more fruitful and the work is already pulling rank in my
memory bank alongside choice quartets by Bartok, Schoenberg, Janaeek
and Shostakovich.
I’m told that the Zehetmair Quartet play their repertoire by heart, and you can sense spontaneous engagement in both works, especially in Bartok’s Fourth, where the trenchant opening Allegro is treated to an unusual (though never disfiguring) level of freedom. The entire performance has a distinctly improvisational feel to it, the finale in particular, which tears off at a terrific lick, yet stops short of excessive tenseness. I’d say that the Vegh Quartet’s later recording is the nearest point of reference, but as the coupling is unique – and most other versions come packed in with the other five quartets – direct comparisons aren’t strictly relevant.
One could, I suppose, baulk at the meagre 43-minute playing time, and yet with music as intense and demanding as this, it’s doubtful that even the most resilient listener would – or could – submit to ‘more of same’. Fine sound. (Gramophone)
I’m told that the Zehetmair Quartet play their repertoire by heart, and you can sense spontaneous engagement in both works, especially in Bartok’s Fourth, where the trenchant opening Allegro is treated to an unusual (though never disfiguring) level of freedom. The entire performance has a distinctly improvisational feel to it, the finale in particular, which tears off at a terrific lick, yet stops short of excessive tenseness. I’d say that the Vegh Quartet’s later recording is the nearest point of reference, but as the coupling is unique – and most other versions come packed in with the other five quartets – direct comparisons aren’t strictly relevant.
One could, I suppose, baulk at the meagre 43-minute playing time, and yet with music as intense and demanding as this, it’s doubtful that even the most resilient listener would – or could – submit to ‘more of same’. Fine sound. (Gramophone)
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