Reviews for the albums that make up this set:


Cedille certainly produces some of the smartest "concept" albums in the classical music business today, because the concept always seems to work musically. Now, the Pacifica Quartet is one of the best chamber ensembles out there, as its Mendelssohn recordings for this same label attest. Even so, there's no dearth of fine Shostakovich cycles, starting with the Borodin Quartet and running through the Emerson Quartet. These performances, every bit as fine as those, would be excellent by themselves, but they do risk getting lost in the discographic shuffle. So it was an inspired idea to pair them with other important works in the same medium by Shostakovich's contemporaries. I'm not sure if this adds up to a "Soviet Experience," whatever that is, but it does make for some great listening.

A great start to a very promising series.

– David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

In every single movement of Shostakovich’s quartets and in the Prokofiev, the Pacifica Quartet penetrates to the very heart and soul of the music. What stands out—matters of technical precision and ensemble blending and balance are givens—is the way in which the players probe for and reveal amazing details even in passages that, superficially, may seem to present relatively flat surfaces unlikely to yield much in the way of dimensionality, such as the Adagio of the Third Quartet. But under inspection of the Pacifica’s microscope, the music displays a topography filled with hidden peaks and valleys. It’s this intellectual curiosity to explore, wedded to largesse of emotional expressivity that makes these performances special.

FANFARE: Jerry Dubins


This is the third volume in Cedille’s ongoing series of Shostakovich quartets, enriched by additional works by the composer’s Soviet colleagues, and like the two previous releases it is a triumph. As with the previous volumes, the Pacifica Quartet’s performances are as good as any. Also in keeping with previous releases, the sonics are marvelously lifelike, well-balanced, and warm. It’s funny how, with all of the fuss and bother about SACD, surround-sound, and whatnot, enterprising small labels like Cedille still make recordings in good, old-fashioned stereo that wipe the floor with outfits that expect new formats to supply a quality that ultimately remains the exclusive province of a top-notch engineer with a great pair of ears.

– David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Shostakovich’s string quartets have been extremely fortunate from the very beginning to have received quite a few outstanding recordings. A number of them are cited above, but there are earlier ones by the Beethoven and Borodin Quartets that have historical significance, as well as more recent ones by the Sorrel and Mandelring Quartets (the last two of which I’ve not heard). But of those I have heard—and that would include all the others named in this review—I believe I’m prepared to say that this cycle by the Pacifica Quartet is the top contender. Whether you already have one or more Shostakovich quartet cycles in your collection, or you have none, the Pacifica’s is a must-have for anyone of the conviction that these are the most profound musical utterances in the realm of the string quartet since Beethoven.

This is a Shostakovich cycle for the ages.

FANFARE: Jerry Dubins