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BIS

Voces Intimae - Sibelius: String Quartets / Tempera Quartet

$21.99

Details

Composer
SIBELIUS, JEAN
Artist
TEMPERA QUARTET
Format
CD
Label
BIS
Released
May 01, 2007
Catalog #
BIS-CD-1466
UPC
7318590014660

About

Sibelius' early Quartet in B-flat Op. 4 (1890) is quite lovely and well worth hearing. It contains some striking anticipations of the composer we know and love, particularly in the harmonies of its slow movement and in its imaginative use of string texture (pizzicato especially). It also shows something of that instinctive feeling for movement that the mature composer developed to such a phenomenal degree. The Tempera Quartet performs both this work and the later Voces Intimae with notable liveliness and evident enthusiasm. In the latter piece, the clean ensemble and vigorous rhythmic profiling prevent the music from sounding dour, particularly in the central slow movement (from which the quartet's nickname derives). However, on occasion--in fortes--the tone of the violins turns a bit crude as the players dig into the notes with excessive vehemence.

The opening piece on the disc, a 12-minute Adagio, features a few attractive but not really memorable ideas. It ends somewhat ambiguously (nothing new when it comes to Sibelius), here suggestive of more to follow--but what that might have been we will probably never know. A tiny fragment of the original ending of Voces Intimae only a few seconds long fulfills BIS's intention to record every scrap of music that Sibelius wrote; but the disc concludes sonorously with the Andante festivo, taken at a good clip and sounding less solemn than usual in this reduced format. As suggested with respect to the major works, the Tempera Quartet handles all of this music expertly, and BIS's sonics are the most consistently excellent in the business. Do try the B-flat quartet: its quality will surprise you.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Tracklist 12 tracks

  1. 1 Adagio in D Minor, JS 12 12:15
    Track
    1
    Title
    Adagio in D Minor, JS 12
    Duration
    12:15
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  2. 2 I. Allegro 07:24
    Track
    2
    Title
    I. Allegro
    Duration
    07:24
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  3. 3 II. Andante sostenuto 07:57
    Track
    3
    Title
    II. Andante sostenuto
    Duration
    07:57
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  4. 4 III. Presto 05:23
    Track
    4
    Title
    III. Presto
    Duration
    05:23
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  5. 5 IV. Allegro 08:40
    Track
    5
    Title
    IV. Allegro
    Duration
    08:40
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  6. 6 I. Andante - Allegro molto moderato 05:53
    Track
    6
    Title
    I. Andante - Allegro molto moderato
    Duration
    05:53
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  7. 7 II. Vivace 02:18
    Track
    7
    Title
    II. Vivace
    Duration
    02:18
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  8. 8 III. Adagio di molto 10:51
    Track
    8
    Title
    III. Adagio di molto
    Duration
    10:51
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  9. 9 IV. Allegretto ma pesante 05:34
    Track
    9
    Title
    IV. Allegretto ma pesante
    Duration
    05:34
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  10. 10 V. Allegro 04:57
    Track
    10
    Title
    V. Allegro
    Duration
    04:57
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  11. 11 V. Allegro (from Risoluto, 8 bars before Fig. 11) 00:32
    Track
    11
    Title
    V. Allegro (from Risoluto, 8 bars before Fig. 11)
    Duration
    00:32
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet
  12. 12 Andante Festivo, JS 34a 05:11
    Track
    12
    Title
    Andante Festivo, JS 34a
    Duration
    05:11
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Tempera Quartet