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Arnold Sch​ö​nberg: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2

by Pražák Quartet, Christine Whittlesey

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1.
String Quartet No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 7 I. Nicht zu rasch 12:11
2.
String Quartet No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 7 II. Kräftig (nicht zu rasch) 11:56
3.
String Quartet No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 7 III. Mäßig (langsame Viertel) 12:06
4.
String Quartet No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 7 IV. Mäßig (heiter) 08:14
5.
String Quartet No. 2 in F Sharp Minor, Op. 10 I. Mäßig (Moderato) 06:14
6.
String Quartet No. 2 in F Sharp Minor, Op. 10 II. Sehr rasch 06:38
7.
String Quartet No. 2 in F Sharp Minor, Op. 10 III. Litanei. Langsam 05:30
8.
String Quartet No. 2 in F Sharp Minor, Op. 10 IV. Entrückung. Sehr langsam 11:02

about

Arnold Schönberg published four string quartets throughout his life, the first dating from 1905 and the fourth from 1936, without mentioning a series of works for this formation not published during his lifetime, such as a quartet of post-romantic writing dated 1897. The Quartet No. 1 Op. 7 is a large piece in one set, the first masterpiece that assured the Viennese the true beginning of his reputation as a composer. Remarkable for its density and the intensity of its orchestration (with only four instruments), it is a work of tonal writing, unlike his later works. The Quartet No. 2 is often considered as one of the crux of the history of music, moving first to the extreme limit of tonality, to the point of coming out of it later. After a first movement still close to the writing Schönberg then practiced, the second movement quotes the Viennese folk song “Ach, du lieber Augustin”, a scherzo which suggests the turn that the rest of the work will constitute. Because the third and fourth movements, something unusual for a string quartet, include a soprano, on poems by Stefan George. And the score then tips over into this indetermination, at the time inconceivable (tonal or atonal?), which will open to Schönberg the prospect of a ‘beyond tonality’ and of a major turning point in the history of music in the 20th century.

Awards: Choc by Le Monde de la Musique, 10 by Répertoire, Recommended by Classica, 5 by Diapason

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250 112

credits

released December 1, 1997

Pražák Quartet (Ensemble)
Christine Whittlesey (Soprano voice)

Studio recordings, Prague, May 2-3 1997 (Op.7), May 3-4, 1994 (Op.10)

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The Pražák Quartet, one of today´s leading string quartets, was founded in 1972 by students at the Prague Conservatory.

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