Sergei Prokofiev’s String Quartet No 2, Op 92, was conceived during wartime. When the German Army approached Moscow in 1941, Soviet officials evacuated Prokofiev and other prominent artists out of the city. Prokofiev was relocated to the southern Soviet region of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic where he became fascinated with the local music and folk instruments. During this period Prokofiev began composing his second string quartet. He poured the exotic folk-songs, dance rhythms and harmonies of the region into the classical mold of the string quartet. It seemed that his time as a war refugee spurred his fertile imagination. Incredibly within a short period, he produced a rich volume of additional works including his opera War and Peace and the seventh piano sonata.

from notes by Calidore String Quartet © 2018