Beethoven: Complete String Quartets, Vol. 5 Quartetto di Cremona

• 1 I. Allegro moderato 10:53
• 2 II. Adagio molto espressivo 10:49
• 3 III. Scherzo. Allegro 04:00
• 4 IV. Presto 09:35
• 5 I. Assai sostenuto - Allegro 09:56
• 6 II. Allegro ma non tanto 08:10
• 7 III. Molto adagio 18:13
• 8 IV. Alla marcia, assai vivace 02:11
• 9 V. Allegro appassionato 06:53
• Total Runtime 01:20:40

Info for Beethoven: Complete String Quartets, Vol. 5

Audite‘s fifth volume of the Complete Beethoven String Quartets presents not only the Op. 132 String Quartet but also Beethoven s only original String Quintet. Lawrence Dutton, the viola player of the Emerson String Quartet, joins the Quartetto di Cremona. Mozart left six string quintets to the music world, Louis Spohr s work catalogue contains seven, whilst Luigi Boccherini completed around 120. Beethoven had three quintets published; however, only one of these was originally conceived for string quintet. However, his opus 29 of 1801 is a true masterwork on the brink between the Classical style of his teacher, Joseph Haydn, and the revolutionary idiom of Beethoven s middle and late periods. The Adagio (with its adjunct of molto espressivo ) in particular heralds an evocative intensity which was still foreign in Beethoven s earlier works. However, by his late oeuvre of the 1820s the Ninth Symphony, 'Missa solemnis', late piano sonatas and quartets Beethoven had developed such a distinctive language that the label of 'Early Romanticism' no longer applies. His String Quartet in A minor, Op. 132, with its five movements and exceptional degree of difficulty also stands apart from contemporary works; then as now, only professional ensembles could tackle this grandly conceived colossus. As in the quintet, the Molto adagio represents the core of the piece. Its title Holy song of thanksgiving of a convalescent to the Deity refers to an illness from which the composer had recovered, and adapts a chant inspired by the Renaissance composer Palestrina. In so doing, Beethoven includes a musical ancestor in his quartet whilst making a religious avowal.

“Uncompromising; there’s a real muscular energy and biting attack there, almost gritty, grainy sound; very powerful, very impressive … I think this series is a very interesting series, and if you haven’t heard any of the volumes from it you should go back and listen because it’s all very impressive, it’s just building up to be a series to have and to hear … an overwhelming performance.” (CD Review)

“Recording the Beethoven strings quartets is a rite of passage for any quartet. The Italian Quartetto di Cremona, still young but together a good decade, has reached that point...the reason to choose this disc is for the other work: the rarely heard String Quintet in C Op 29...The group’s Italianate grace comes into its own in this radiant music” (The Guardian)

“They play with fervour and flair. If at times in the monumental Op 132 in A minor you long for a degree more weight, more digging into the soil than skittering in the air, the reason to choose this disc is for the other work: the rarely heard String Quintet in C Op 29, with a second viola, Lawrence Dutton, as fifth player. The group’s Italianate grace comes into its own in this radiant music, with its lyrical opening, heartfelt Adagio, blithe Scherzo and fly-away Presto.” (The Observer)

“This is the most exciting new disc of string quartet playing that I have come across for a long time” (BBC Music Magazine)

“This fifth volume of one of the most impressive cycles to emerge in recent years showcases bold, powerful playing … the entire disc displays unanimity and depth of playing of the very highest order” (Classical Music)

Lawrence Dutton, viola
Quartetto di Cremona

Quartetto di Cremona
Internationally renowned for their "extremely mature and lyrical sound" (Strad), the Quartetto di Cremona now graces the stages of the most prestigious venues. Their focus and intensity brings life to music from the “tight blend and immaculate voicing” of their Brahms to the “sleek and elegant” dynamic countouring of their Mozart (Strad). The Quartetto di Cremona’s dedication to their work as a string quartet shows through their music.

The Quartetto di Cremona formed in 2000 at the Stauffer Academy in Cremona and continued their studies with Hatto Beyerle. In 2005 the Quartetto di Cremona received a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship.

Building on their early successes, the Quartetto di Cremona has played to critical acclaim at the most important venues and festivals in Europe including at the Beethoven Haus and BeethovenFest Bonn, Konzerthaus (Berlin), Klara Festival (Brussels), Mecklenberg Vorpommen Music Festival, Båstad Chamber Music Festival, Turku Music Festival, Handelsbeurs (Gent), Moving on Music Festival (Northern Ireland, recorded by BBC Radio 3), and numerous performances at the Wigmore Hall (London).

The Quartetto di Cremona has toured extensively in Australia and performed at the renowned Perth International Art Festival Australia. In the USA, they recently won the eleventh Web Concert Hall Competition and they will perform at Metropolitan Museum in March 2013.

In their homeland of Italy they have made their name performing at the Accademia di S. Cecilia in Rome and at the most renowned Italian music societies. The Quartet was nominated "Artist in Residence" at the Societa' del Quartetto of Milan and will be involved in various projects culminating in 2014 for the 150th anniversary of the Societa' del Quartetto – when they will perform the complete cycle of Beethoven quartets.

Recent and forthcoming tours include engagements in the USA, Japan, Mexico and China and in Europe the Quartetto di Cremona will tour the UK, Italy, Scandinavia, Germany, and make a debut tour of Austria.

Their extensive repertoire ranges from the early Haydn quartets to Wolfgang Rihm and Helmut Lachenmann, with particular interest in contemporary Italian music including the composers Fabio Vacchi, Luciano Berio and Luigi Nono.

Their debut recording for Decca encompassed the complete string quartets by Fabio Vacchi, released in April 2011. From July 2012 over the next two seasons the Quartetto di Cremona will record the complete Beethoven String Quartets for the German label Audite, which also issued Italian Journey, dedicated to Italian composers in November 2012.

An important part of the Quartetto di Cremona’s activity is teaching master classes throughout Europe. Since Autumn 2011, the Quartet has taught at the Walter Stauffer Academy in Cremona.

The Quartetto di Cremona has been chosen as a testimonial of the International project "Friends of Stradivari".

Booklet for Beethoven: Complete String Quartets, Vol. 5