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Shostakovich: String Quartet Nos. 2, 7 & 8
Supraphon

Shostakovich: String Quartet Nos. 2, 7 & 8

$35.99

Details

Composer
SHOSTAKOVICH, DMITRI
Artist
PAVEL HAAS QUARTET
Format
CD
Label
Supraphon
Released
Oct 25, 2019
Catalog #
SU4271-2
UPC
099925427122

About

Shostakovich - his music is a challenge each and every quartet sooner or later has to face up to. Yet when it comes to the Pavel Haas Quartet, it seems to be in their very DNA. The ensemble's unbridled, impulsive and, now and then, frenetic energy, sense for extreme contrast, ability to bring to bear gradation from breath-taking subtlety and tenderness to symphonic drama are facets essentially incident to Shostakovich's music. Although composed in safety, away from the horrors of World War II, String Quartet No. 2 (1944) reflects the suffering, uncertainty and anxiety of living at the time (the lyrical Recitative of the second movement, as performed by Veronika Jarušková, the first violin). Both dating from 1960, String Quartets Nos. 7 and 8 are truly intimate confessions. While Shostakovich dedicated the former (the shortest piece of the cycle) to the memory of his first wife, he most likely intended the latter as his own epitaph, at the time when be hovered on the thin line between life and death. Attesting to the autobiographical nature of String Quartet No. 8 is the opening DSCH motif, Shostakovich's musical signature, which reoccurs throughout the piece. The Pavel Haas Quartet surpass the abyss of time, as well as the barrier of personal physical existence, delving into the very centre of Shostakovich's music and reflecting the full scale of emotions with airiness, as if the music were their own. The Pavel Haas Quartet and (in truth) their Shostakovich. At long last!

Tracklist 12 tracks

  1. 1 I. Overture: Moderato con moto 08:07
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Overture: Moderato con moto
    Duration
    08:07
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  2. 2 II. Recitative and Romance: Adagio 11:30
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Recitative and Romance: Adagio
    Duration
    11:30
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  3. 3 III. Waltz: Allegro 05:25
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. Waltz: Allegro
    Duration
    05:25
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  4. 4 IV. Theme with Variations: Adagio 10:46
    Track
    4
    Title
    IV. Theme with Variations: Adagio
    Duration
    10:46
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  5. 5 I. Allegretto 03:38
    Track
    5
    Title
    I. Allegretto
    Duration
    03:38
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  6. 6 II. Lento 03:21
    Track
    6
    Title
    II. Lento
    Duration
    03:21
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  7. 7 III. Allegro - Allegretto 05:54
    Track
    7
    Title
    III. Allegro - Allegretto
    Duration
    05:54
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  8. 8 I. Largo - 05:00
    Track
    8
    Title
    I. Largo -
    Duration
    05:00
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  9. 9 II. Allegro molto - 02:54
    Track
    9
    Title
    II. Allegro molto -
    Duration
    02:54
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  10. 10 III. Allegretto - 04:38
    Track
    10
    Title
    III. Allegretto -
    Duration
    04:38
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  11. 11 IV. Largo - 05:16
    Track
    11
    Title
    IV. Largo -
    Duration
    05:16
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet
  12. 12 V. Largo 03:50
    Track
    12
    Title
    V. Largo
    Duration
    03:50
    Composer
    Dmitri Shostakovich
    Ensemble
    Pavel Haas Quartet