Beethoven String Quartets Op. 18, Nos. 4-6 Eybler Quartet

• Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827): String Quartet in C Minor, Op. 18, No. 4:
• 1 String Quartet in C Minor, Op. 18, No. 4: I. Allegro ma non tanto 07:34
• 2 String Quartet in C Minor, Op. 18, No. 4: II. Andante scherzoso quasi allegretto 06:19
• 3 String Quartet in C Minor, Op. 18, No. 4: III. Menuetto - Allegro 02:56
• 4 String Quartet in C Minor, Op. 18, No. 4: IV. Allegretto 04:21
• String Quartet in A Major, Op. 18, No. 5:
• 5 String Quartet in A Major, Op. 18, No. 5: I. Allegro 08:46
• 6 String Quartet in A Major, Op. 18, No. 5: II. Menuetto 03:42
• 7 String Quartet in A Major, Op. 18, No. 5: III. Andante cantabile 10:00
• 8 String Quartet in A Major, Op. 18, No. 5: IV. Allegro 05:40
• String Quartet in B-Flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6:
• 9 String Quartet in B-Flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6: I. Allegro con brio 06:57
• 10 String Quartet in B-Flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6: II. Adagio ma non tanto 08:00
• 11 String Quartet in B-Flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6: III. Scherzo - Allegro 03:05
• 12 String Quartet in B-Flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6: IV. La Malinconia. Adagio - Allegretto quasi allegro 07:12
• Total Runtime 01:14:32

Info for Beethoven String Quartets Op. 18, Nos. 4-6

Opus 18 needs little introduction and is often revered as demonstrating Beethoven’s total mastery of the Classical String Quartet. The Eybler Quartet completes its exploration of these iconic quartets in an album that showcases radiantly Beethoven’s fiendishly difficult tempi and his genius for finding contrast within a single pulse as well as highlighting the depths of his humour, wit and irony. This second volume features the String Quartets nos. 4-6.

The Eybler Quartet came together in 2004 to explore the works of the first century -and-a-half of the string quartet and plays on instruments appropriate to the period of the music it performs. The Toronto-based ensemble’s live performances have consistently garnered praise as “glowing and committed”, “spirited” and “lively and energizing”. The Eybler Quartet harnesses a unique combination of talents and skills: razor-sharp ensemble skills, technical prowess, expertise in period instrument performance and an unquenchable passion for the repertoire.

The group’s five other recordings feature world premieres of Eybler’s Opus 1, world premieres of Backofen quintets coupled with Mozart’s clarinet quintet featuring Jane Booth, Haydn's six quartets Op. 33, complete on 2 CDs, the world premiere of Johann Baptist Vanhal’s op. 6 on period instruments and volume one of Beethoven’s Opus 18 the companion to the present album.

Eybler Quartet:
Aisslinn Nosky, violin
Julia Wedman, violin
Patrick Jordan, viola
Margaret Gay, cello

The Eybler Quartet
came together in late 2004 to explore the works of the first century and a half of the string quartet, with a healthy attention to lesser known composers such as their namesake, Joseph Leopold Edler von Eybler. The group brings a unique combination of talents and skills: razor-sharp ensemble skills, technical prowess, expertise in period instrument performance and an unquenchable passion for the repertoire. The Toronto- based ensemble’s live performances have consistently garnered praise as “glowing and committed”, “spirited” and “lively and energizing”. Their recording of Joseph Haydn’s Op. 33 String Quartets for the Analekta label was called “simply a treasure” by Early Music America, “the tempos are beautifully chosen, the ensemble perfect, and the intonation absolutely pure. This is music-making that reflects the deeply human and attractive qualities found in Haydn the composer—good humor, wit, and invention.” Their recording with clarinetist Jane Booth won praise from Gramophone for being “totally engaging performances that breathe life into Backofen’s music”. Their most recent release, Beethoven Quartets, Opus 18 nos. 1-3 garnered this praise from Gramophone: “…the revelations flood in: the swiftness with which the Eyblers take the great Adagio of Op 18 No 1 allows violinist Aisslinn Nosky’s almost vibrato-free period-instrument tone to sound breathtakingly fragile.” Violinist Julia Wedman and violist Patrick G. Jordan are members of Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra; Violinist Aisslinn Nosky is concertmaster of the Handel and Haydn Society and Principal Guest Conductor of the Niagara Symphony Orchestra; Julia and Aisslinn are also members of I FURIOSI Baroque Ensemble. Cellist Margaret Gay is much in demand as both a modern and period instrument player. This summer the group will again be on the faculty at the Banff Centre as part of the EQ: Evolution of the String Quartet program.

This album contains no booklet.