Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - String Quartets Nos. 14-23 (Quatuor Mosaïques)

Information

Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

CD1:

• (01-04) String Quartet No. 14 in G major "Spring", K. 387
• (05-08) String Quartet No. 15 in D minor, K. 421 (K. 417b)

CD2:

• (01-04) String Quartet No. 17 in B flat major "The Hunt", K. 458
• (05-08) String Quartet No. 16 in E flat major, K. 428 (K. 421b)

CD3:

• (01-04) String Quartet No. 18 in A major, K. 464
• (05-08) String Quartet No. 19 in C major "Dissonance", K. 465

CD4:

• (01-04) String Quartet No. 22 in B flat major "Prussian 2", K. 589
• (05-08) String Quartet No. 20 in D major "Hoffmeister", K. 499

CD5:

• (01-04) String Quartet No. 21 in D major "Prussian 1", K. 575
• (05-08) String Quartet No. 23 in F major "Prussian 3", K. 590

Quatuor Mosaïques
Erich Höbarth, violin
Andrea Bischof, violin
Anita Mitterer, viola
Christophe Coin, cello

Date: 2003 (box set)
Label: Naïve
http://www.naive.fr/oeuvre/mozart---les-quatuors-dedies-a-haydn--les-quatuors-prussiens--hoffmeister

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Review

An impeccable end to an outstanding series: precision and instinct perfectly matched

The Mosaïques’ recording of the 10 mature Mozart Quartets is completed by this release‚ so it’s time to salute an outstanding achievement. Apart from the clear‚ rich sound of the period instruments and the precise‚ beautiful tuning‚ what impresses about this Mozart playing is the care for detail‚ the way each phrase is shaped so as to fit perfectly into context while having its own expressive nuances brought out clearly. This often leads the quartet to use more rubato‚ to make more noticeable breathing spaces between sentences than many other groups do.

In the first movements of both these quartets‚ for instance‚ the Mosaïques adopt a very similar tempo and tone to the Quartetto Italiano‚ but the Italians aren’t so rhythmically flexible; though the music is beautifully shaped‚ we move continually onwards at a steady pace‚ drawing attention to the overall effect. But with the Mosaïques we’re made to listen to and appreciate the significance of each detail as it unfolds. With this approach there might be a danger of sounding contrived‚ but even when adopting a mannered style‚ as in the Minuet of K499‚ the Mosaïques retain a strong physical connection with the music’s natural pulse – by comparison the Quartetto Italiano here seem a trifle heavy and humourless. The slow movements of both quartets are taken at a flowing pace‚ making possible an unusual degree of expressive flexibility‚ achieved without any sense of hurry. All repeats are made‚ including those on the Minuet’s da capo in K499. This means that the expansive K499 lasts more than 36 minutes. The longer the better‚ as far as I’m concerned.

-- Gramophone

More reviews:
http://www.amazon.com/Mozart-String-Quartets-Quatuor-Mosaiques/dp/B0000CNTK4

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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 in Salzburg – 5 December 1791 in Vienna) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty. Till his death in Vienna, he composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, operatic, and choral music. Mozart is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers, and his influence is profound on subsequent Western art music.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart

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Quatuor Mosaïques is an Austrian string quartet, one of the first string quartets devoted to use of period instruments and authentic performance practices, founded in 1987 by four members of the Concentus Musicus Wien. They specialize in music of the 18th century. The quartet's discography includes works by Arriaga, Beethoven, Boccherini, Boëly, Haydn, Jadin, Mendelssohn, Mozart and Schubert. It has performed works of the early twentieth century, by composers such as Debussy, Bartók and Webern. Their Haydn recordings have received critical acclaim, including several Gramophone Awards.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quatuor_Mosa%C3%AFques

http://www.allmusic.com/artist/quatuor-mosa%C3%AFques-mn0002220907/biography

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