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Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Souvenir de Florence / Anton​í​n Dvo​ř​á​k: String Sextet

by Kocian Quartet, Josef Klusoň, Michal Kaňka

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about

The string sextet genre was introduced at the end of the 18th century by Boccherini but did not fully blossom until Brahms, Tchaikovsky, before Schönberg, Reger, Martinu and Richard Strauss. Antonín Dvořák composed his sextet, his only work in that genre, in just two weeks in May 1878. His reputation as a composer was beginning to escalate, he was experienced with chamber composition, having already produced nine string quartets, a string quintet, four piano trios, a piano quartet, and a piano quintet. The Sextet was premiered as a private performance at the home of the renowned violinist Joseph Joachim; extremely well received, it was quickly picked up internationally. Written during the "Slavonic" period of the Bohemian composer, the second and third movements are cast respectively as Czech folk dances, the ‘dumka’ and the ‘furiant’. "The first movement must be played with a great deal of passion and spirit; the second, lilting; the third, facetious; the fourth, gay and determined", according to Tchaikovsky. A ‘pause’ score, written after the completion of The Queen of Spades and following a journey down the paths of a luminous Italy, Souvenir de Florence combines clarity and freshness, spiced up by an exuberance that is thoroughly Slav. This calls for unbridled virtuosity on the part of the performers yet without sacrificing any of the fearsomely strict pointillist polish. Its polyphonic richness does not, for all that, sanction the too-frequent expansion for string orchestra, as its amazing balance depends precisely on the fineness of the line.

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

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credits

released January 1, 1998

Kocian Quartet (Ensemble)
Josef Klusoň (Viola)
Michal Kaňka (Cello)

Studio recordings, Prague, January 1998

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all rights reserved

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