Wednesday 28 July 2010

Haydn - String Quartet 76 [Kodaly Quartet]

At the moment i seem to be playing lots of String Quartets, so here's Haydn's first three of the Op76 set of six, it's a shame that these aren't put into a double disc box set, they would make a nice package.

About the booklet, this must be one of the worst covers ever, everything about it is boring and uninspired, from the painting which is flat and drab, to the white background which is bland, Naxos should get an award for being so uninventive, if it wasn't for the music, i wouldn't have bought this disc.

The Kodaly Quartet were formed in 1965 in Hungary, since their formation, they have had a complete new line up, and since this recording [1989], only one member remains in the Quartet.

I certainly liked the second String Quartet of the set, the one i refer to as number 76 [Op76/2], and especially the first movement, there's a lovely feeling of forward momentum at the start [0:00-1:47], and especially some very sour/sweet sounds [0:46+ & 0:52+], which create the very soundworld of this particular movement, of course the opening is repeated [1:47-3:30], and so of course are these bittersweet sounds [2:32+ & 2:38+], the opening returns a third time [4:51+], but it soon develops into a new and unique path, closing down the Quartet, a very satisfying String Quartet by Haydn.

Here's the first movement of Op76/2 being played by Seraphina on YouTube.