Robert Fuchs - String Quartets Nos. 3 & 4 (Minguet Quartett)

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Composer: Robert Fuchs

1. String Quartet No. 4 in A major, Op. 106: I. Allegro molto moderato, quasi allegretto
2. String Quartet No. 4 in A major, Op. 106: II. Allegro vivace
3. String Quartet No. 4 in A major, Op. 106: III. Andante sostenuto
4. String Quartet No. 4 in A major, Op. 106: IV. Andantino - Allegro
5. String Quartet No. 3 in C major, Op. 71: I. Allegro molto moderato e grazioso
6. String Quartet No. 3 in C major, Op. 71: II. Allegro vivace
7. String Quartet No. 3 in C major, Op. 71: III. Adagio molto e con sentimento
8. String Quartet No. 3 in C major, Op. 71: IV. Finale. Allegro con brio

Minguet Quartett
Ulrich Isfort, violin
Annette Reisinger, violin
Irene Schwalb, viola
Matthias Diener, cello

Date: 2001
Label: MDG

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Review

This release came as a happy and unexpected surprise. Fuchs achieved success early in his life with his orchestral serenades. He taught harmony at the Vienna Conservatory (teaching as a professor in 1886). Upon retirement, he was succeeded by Franz Schreker. Towards the end of his life he was (musically) overtaken by new musical developments and faded into the background of obscurity.

The String Quartet No. 3, Op. 71 was published in Vienna in 1903. It breathes the fresh, open air of C major and is notable for the inner intensity of its slow movement and the pure charm of its second movement. Only the opening Allegro molto moderato e grazioso perhaps suffers from a tendency to meander and as such appears over-long.

The Op. 106 quartet (in the 'happy' key of A major) brings a more complete experience. It feels integrated and once again the slow movement (here Andante sostenuto) is emotive and touching, with a particularly tender close.

The Miguet String Quartet is an extremely well-balanced ensemble, blessed with a very warm sound entirely suited to this repertoire and faithfully reproduced by Dabringhaus und Grimm's excellent recording. The quartet's fierce commitment brings with it the bonus of youth and the excitement of fresh discovery.

Volume 1 is available on MDG603 1001-2.

-- Colin Clarke, MusicWeb International

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Robert Fuchs (15 February 1847 – 19 February 1927) was an Austrian composer and music teacher. As Professor of music theory at the Vienna Conservatory, Fuchs taught many notable composers, among them are Mahler, Sibelius, Wolf, Schmidt, Schreker, Zemlinsky, Enescu and Konrgold. As a composer, Fuchs was very highly regarded in his lifetime, with Brahms among his admirers. Famous contemporary conductors, including Arthur Nikisch, Felix Weingartner and Hans Richter, championed his works when they had the opportunity. Fuchs' best known works were his five serenades.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Fuchs

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Minguet Quartet was founded in 1988. The group takes its name from Pablo Minguet, an eighteenth-century Spanish philosopher who attempted in his writings to make the fine arts accessible to the masses, and this idea is a chief artistic concern of the Minguet Quartet. The ensemble concentrates on the Classical-Romantic literature and modern music in equal measure, and has proven its commitment to compositions of the 21st century through numerous premieres. The quartet's current members include: Ulrich Isfort, Annette Reisinger (violins), Aroa Sorin (viola), and Matthias Diener (cello).
http://www.minguet.de/

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