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Weinberg: String Quartets Nos. 2, 5 & 8, Vol. 1 / Arcadia Quartet
Chandos

Weinberg: String Quartets Nos. 2, 5 & 8, Vol. 1 / Arcadia Quartet

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Details

Composer
WEINBERG, MIECZYSLAW
Artist
ARCADIA QUARTET
Format
CD
Label
Chandos
Released
Jan 08, 2021
Catalog #
CHAN 20158
UPC
095115215821

About

The seventeen string quartets of Weinberg span nearly half a century, from his student days in Warsaw to the end of his career in Moscow, and show his development as a composer more clearly than his work in any other genre. The Second Quartet, composed in 1939 – 40 whilst studying in Minsk, was dedicated to his mother and sister, who he would later learn had not survived the German invasion of Poland. Quartet No. 5, of 1945, was the first in which he added titles to each movement, and reflects the influence of Shostakovich over the young composer. The final quartet in this programme – No. 8 – was written in 1959 and dedicated to the Borodin Quartet. For many years the best-known of Weinberg’s quartets in the west, this single-movement work is divided into three sections with a coda. The Arcadia Quartet is a passionate advocate for these quartets, writing: ‘[Weinberg’s] music is like a glow of light surrounded by the darkness of the unknown, and it quickly became a goal of ours to attempt to dilute these shadows. With every recording and every live performance of his music, we intend to shine some light on this wide-ranging, profound phenomenon, which has remained overlooked for so long, and we hope that, with time, Mieczys?aw Weinberg will take his rightful place in the history of music.’

REVIEW:

The Arcadia’s evident enthusiasm for the music is perfectly conveyed here with playing that maximises the emotional range explored in each work, as well as exploiting to the full the music’s tonal and textural varieties and its underlying sense of unease. These contrasts are placed in sharp relief when comparing the relentless Bartókian ferocity they achieve in the rhythmically dynamic Scherzo from the Fifth Quartet with the easygoing geniality that is projected in the opening movement of the Second, or the austere solemnity that characterises the slow sections of the Eighth.

–BBC Music Magazine

Tracklist 12 tracks

  1. 1 I. Allegro 08:56
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Allegro
    Duration
    08:56
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  2. 2 II. Andante 08:57
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Andante
    Duration
    08:57
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  3. 3 III. Allegretto 04:02
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. Allegretto
    Duration
    04:02
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  4. 4 IV. Presto 03:59
    Track
    4
    Title
    IV. Presto
    Duration
    03:59
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  5. 5 I. Melodia: Andante sostenuto 06:17
    Track
    5
    Title
    I. Melodia: Andante sostenuto
    Duration
    06:17
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  6. 6 II. Humoreska: Andantino 06:04
    Track
    6
    Title
    II. Humoreska: Andantino
    Duration
    06:04
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  7. 7 III. Scherzo: Allegro molto 02:28
    Track
    7
    Title
    III. Scherzo: Allegro molto
    Duration
    02:28
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  8. 8 IV. Improvisation: Lento 05:20
    Track
    8
    Title
    IV. Improvisation: Lento
    Duration
    05:20
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  9. 9 V. Serenata: Moderato con moto 06:19
    Track
    9
    Title
    V. Serenata: Moderato con moto
    Duration
    06:19
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  10. 10 Adagio - Andante - Adagio - 07:22
    Track
    10
    Title
    Adagio - Andante - Adagio -
    Duration
    07:22
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  11. 11 Allegretto - Allegro - Allegretto - 05:45
    Track
    11
    Title
    Allegretto - Allegro - Allegretto -
    Duration
    05:45
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet
  12. 12 Doppio più lento - Andante 02:21
    Track
    12
    Title
    Doppio più lento - Andante
    Duration
    02:21
    Composer
    Mieczysław Weinberg
    Ensemble
    Arcadia Quartet