Shostakovich: Complete String Quartets, Vol. I Mandelring Quartett

• 1 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 1 in C Major, Op. 49: I. Moderato 04:39
• 2 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 1 in C Major, Op. 49: II. Moderato 04:37
• 3 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 1 in C Major, Op. 49: III. Allegro molto 02:23
• 4 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 1 in C Major, Op. 49: IV. Allegro 03:01
• 5 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 68: I. Ouverture: Moderato con moto 07:55
• 6 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 68: II. Recitative and Romance - Adagio 10:52
• 7 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 68: III. Valse. Allegro 04:49
• 8 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 68: IV. Theme with Variations. Adagio - Moderato Con Moto - Allegretto 10:07
• 9 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83: I. Allegretto 03:35
• 10 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83: II. Andantino 05:32
• 11 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83: III. Allegretto 05:00
• 12 Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83: IV. Allegretto 10:14
• Total Runtime 01:12:44

Info for Shostakovich: Complete String Quartets, Vol. I

Dmitri Shostakovich’s First Quartet had a surprise in store for those who knew how much all composers respect the string quartet genre. What the 32-year-old star of the Soviet composers’ scene turned out in 1938 was a spring-like, worldly “quartettino,” free of all heaviness and pseudo-profundity. Some observers saw it as a conscious act of “refusal,” perhaps also the composer’s reaction to his being reprimanded by Stalinist officials. Only six years later, in the Second Quartet (1944), did Shostakovich prove what the genre still had to offer him in terms of musical possibilities. In its form, a (neo-baroque) suite, the work took after the experimental quartets of the late Beethoven, while its language was reminiscent of Tchaikovsky. The Fourth Quartet of 1949, kept for years by the composer in his desk drawer after renewed harsh attacks, begins with a “rustic scene” and ends with a stridently furioso Finale with Jewish overtones.

With these three works, the Mandelring Quartet begins its complete recording of the fifteen string quartets of Dmitri Shostakovich – an imposing body of work unparalleled in the twentieth century for its variety and all-embracing grasp of issues.

“The playing is faultless throughout, and the extremely clear and cleanly defined recorded sound forms part of the performance. I look forward with anticipation to the remaining releases.” (The Strad)

Mandelring Quartett

Mandelring Quartett
The Mandelring Quartet’s remarkable homogeneity of sound, intonation and phrasing has become its distinguishing characteristic; four individuals who play as one in their shared determination to always seek out the innermost core of the music and remain open to the musical truth. By grasping the spiritual dimension, exploring the emotional extremes and working on the details, these musicians probe far beneath the surface of each work, thus revealing the multiplicity of meanings inherent in each. Their approach to the music is always both emotional and personal. All this combines to make the Mandelring Quartet one of the most high-profile ensembles on the international chamber music scene.

As winners of several major international competitions – Munich (ARD), Evian and Reggio Emilia (Premio Paolo Borciani) – the Mandelring Quartet has emerged as one of the important string quartets of today, appearing at the world's great concert venues. In addition to numerous performances in Germany, the Mandelring Quartet's concert tours have taken them throughout Europe – Amsterdam, Brus­sels, London, Madrid, Paris and Vienna – annually to North America – New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles, Vancouver – to Japan – Osaka and Tokyo – Central and South America – Buenos Aires, Lima, Montevideo – the Middle East and Asia.

The Mandelring Quartet has enjoyed highly successful appearances at the Rheingau Festival, the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival and other important international festivals such as Lockenhaus, Montpellier, Montreal, Ottawa, the Engadiner Konzertwochen in Switzerland and the Salzburg Festival, where they have been invited to present complete cycle of Shostakovich string quartets in summer 2011.

The Quartet's CD recordings have received numerous awards. Numbering more than two dozen, they include a Schubert string quartet cycle, piano quintets by Brahms and Franck and a series "Brahms and his Contemporaries", selected by the Strad Magazine as CD Of The Month saying: “Here the Mandelring combine the LaSalle Quartet’s intellectual vigor with the Amadeus’ unbridled passion to provide the best of both worlds.” Their recordings of the string quartets of Shostakovich have been hailed by the press as one of the outstanding complete recordings of our time. “The direct comparison I've done puts the Mandelring Quartet's cycle up with the best. If I were to shed all but two cycles, I would keep the Borodin cycle and the Mandelring Quartet.” (Fanfare). The CD with Schumann’s Piano Quartet and Piano Quintet has been praised as the new reference recording, and their recent disc of String Quartets by Leoš Janác(ek has received the German Record Critics' Prize.

The HAMBACHERMusikFEST, the quartet’s own festival, provides a meeting place each year for lovers of chamber music from all over the world. Since 2010 the Mandelring Quartet has presented a regular series of concerts at the Kammermusicsaal of the Berlin Philharmonic.

This album contains no booklet.