Search - Martinu Quartet :: Martinu: String Quartets, Vol. 2 (Nos. 3 & 6 / Duo / Three Madrigals)

Nearly all top-drawer Martinu

J Scott Morrison | Middlebury VT, USA | 12/06/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Martinu, like Milhaud, is often charged with having produced a very uneven oeuvre, the outgrowth of writing too much music too quickly and with too little self-criticism. That is probably true. But this disc of Martinu string music (two quartets, two duos - one for violin and cello, one for violin and viola) is very nearly all top-drawer Martinu. In my opinion, the one exception is the Duo for Violin and Cello which, although given a sterling performance here, is rather grey music that doesn't often come to life.The best-known pieces here are the 'Madrigals' for violin and viola, written for siblings Joseph and Lillian Fuchs whom I had the pleasure of hearing play them many years ago. This present recording certainly can hold its own. The highlight here is the lyrical, slightly wistful middle movement; particularly effective are the intertwined arpeggios that have the two instruments chasing each other before the movement ends in utterly still serenity. The two lively outer movements, rhythmically energetic, are played with infectious élan. The first of the two quartets, No. 3, was written during Martinu's lengthy sojourn in Paris, and it reflects this in some impressionistic harmonies. But make no mistake, Martinu was already at this time (1929) moving towards his more angular style that later emerged when he began focusing more on tunes and harmonies of his native Czechoslovakia. Indeed, in the Quartet No. 6 Martinu's birthplace comes calling, although tinged somewhat by some Bartókian harmonic devices. In the final movement, particularly effective are the long melodies given primarily to the viola and cello while accompanied by violin arpeggios--luscious writing lusciously played.The Martinu Quartet, not surprisingly, has specialized in the quartets of Martinu and have, in fact, recorded some if not all of them before. They obviously have lived with these pieces for a long time and yet their playing does not suffer from routine. The quality of the recorded sound is excellent, as one comes to expect from Naxos recordings. I've given the release only four stars, perhaps unfairly, because of the slight falling off of quality in the writing of the Duos. Nonetheless, the 'Madrigals' alone make this disc worth buying if you don't already have a recording of them; trust me, they are wonderful pieces."