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Track(s) taken from CDA67585

String Quartet No 14 in D minor 'Death and the Maiden', D810

composer
1824; first published by Joseph Czerný in 1831

Takács Quartet
Recording details: May 2006
St George's, Brandon Hill, United Kingdom
Produced by Chris Hazell
Engineered by Simon Eadon
Release date: October 2006
Total duration: 35 minutes 58 seconds

Cover artwork: Ahasuerus at the End of the World by Adolph Hiremy-Hirschl (1860-1933)
Private Collection / The Maas Gallery, London / Bridgeman Images
 

Reviews

‘The Takács have the ability to make you believe that there's no other possible way the music should go, and the strength to overturn preconceptions that comes only with the greatest performers’ (Gramophone)

‘Schubert's two most accessible quartets receive interpretations on this disc which are as near ideal as one is ever likely to hear’ (BBC Music Magazine)

Death and the Maiden is a deeply affecting reading with the violin of Edward Dusinberre tenderly conveying the maiden's vulnerability and the mounting panic as she is stalked by the insistent death march of the other three instruments. The musicians capture Schubert's distinctive blend of beauty and angst’ (The Observer)

‘This superb CD is [The Takács Quartet's] first for Hyperion: immaculate playing and sublime beauty’ (The Independent)

‘This is intense music-making of very high quality indeed’ (International Record Review)

‘It is a considerable coup for Hyperion to sign up the Takács Quartet. They are currently the greatest string quartet in the world … the first product of the group's new partnership is outstanding … the recording quality is ideal—natural, never aggressive. This disc is a model for what chamber music should be’ (The Guardian)

‘The sharpness and subtlety of this Death and the Maiden takes it to the top of available versions. With this superb disc the collaboration couldn't have got off to a better start’ (The Times)

‘The quartets … receive performances that do radiant justice to their genius. That of the D minor is prodigious. I have never heard the panic-stricken finale—music whose audacities still take the breath away—played more ferociously. The Takács also find memorably hushed sounds for the twilight world that much of both works inhabits’ (The Sunday Times)

‘Edgy, inspired playing, with enough broody lyricism to set the atmosphere of the A minor's opening in a few notes, and to balance its outwardly more cheerful finale with a disingenous wistfulness that tells us we're hearing the tip of Schubert's emotional iceberg. Death and the Maiden is given a high-octane treatment that exposes Schubert's raw nerve-endings with strong tempi and a near-violent intensity of tone’ (Classic FM Magazine)

‘Another great achievement of this recording is the sound. The engineers really surpassed themselves; it is natural, reverberant and crystal clear—always bright and detailed. The Takács Quartet's move from Decca to Hyperion certainly seems to be a successful marriage … a worthy contender among the elite of Schubert string quartet recordings’ (Fanfare, USA)

‘The ensemble, even with a new viola player, is impeccable—this is still a quartet that sounds as though it breathes and thinks as one – and some of leader Edward Dusinberre’s playing is intensely beautiful. The recording is superb: up close and personal, so all the detail’s there, yet there’s enough ambient detail to stop it from becoming too invasive. It’s the first recording the Takács has made for its new label Hyperion, and they must be thrilled with it’ (CDReview)

‘The impassioned beginning of Death and the Maiden sweeps all before it, and the jittery refrain from the finale sounds like a madman's jig, different each time it appears, too. The Rosamunde is simply heartbreaking. The playing from all four instruments is spectacular in its force and finesse. For once, that abused term 'definitive' is absolutely justified’ (The Dallas Morning News)

‘Now, with veteran San Francisco Symphony principal violist Geraldine Walther replacing their former violist, their new recording that pairs Schubert's Death and the Maiden and Rosamunde string quartets (Hyperion) retains if not magnifies the same impact. The essential interplay and cooperation between viola and cello that make the slow movement of Death and the Maiden sing with such devastating eloquence are reinforced by the heart-breaking sweetness and forceful cries of first violinist Edward Dusinberre. These are great musicians, with veteran second violinist Karoly Schranz and cellist Andras Fejer equally eloquent. The performance is riveting, as shattering as it is ultimately uplifting. If the Rosamunde quartet represents a gentler excursion into melancholy, it is no less filled with beauty. Here again, the extraordinary oneness between the members of the quartet enriches musicianship as thought through as it is alive to every moment. What keeps the playing fresh is the tension and the constant interplay of pitch, rhythm, and nuance that declare Schubert's emotions as real and relevant today as they were close to two centuries ago’ (Bay Area Reporter, USA)

‘If their recent Hyperion debut is any indication, everything is pretty copacetic. The recordings capture the quartet's ability in concert to build a seemingly spontaneous rhetorical structure for its characteristic drive, fire and focus, while making each member of the audience feel that the quartet is playing for him or her alone … Hyperion has outdone itself for the release, choosing for the CD cover Hungarian artist Adolph Hiremy-Hirsch's darkly intense 1888 painting 'Ahasuerus at the End of the World', which powerfully reflects the composer's transformation of death into something beautiful’ (Strings, USA)

‘These are warm and insightful performances of two of Schubert's most affecting chamber music works, both written during a period of intense depression. Though they remain some of the bleakest music of his career, these two string quartets still demonstrate Schubert's sublime melodic gift, and with this disc the Takács Quartet makes a valuable addition to the recorded catalog of these important pieces. Recommended’ (CD Hotlist, USA)

‘Hyperion already has cornered the market with its roster of top pianists, and with this release the label looks about ready to do so with string quartets as well. On evidence here, the new partnership is operating in top form … 'Death and the Maiden' is frighteningly intense in its outer movements, with driving rhythms and a real feeling of danger, of music making 'on the edge' in the concluding tarantella … Hyperion's sonics do them proud. Music lovers have much to enjoy, and much to look forward to in this and future releases’ (Classics Today)

‘This is superb quartet-playing, the quality of which becomes even more formidable over several listens … the latest stage of the Takács Quartet's career has got off to a very impressive start’ (Classical Source)

«Certes nous n'avions «besoin» d'une nouvelle interprétation des Quatuors «La Jeune fille et la mort» et «Rosamunde», mais ce CD est imparable … les Takács ont plus que bein réussi leur entrée au catalogue Hyperion. Si leur version de «La Jeune fille et la mort» fait jeu égal avec les meilleurs, celle de «Rosamunde» se dégage vraiment comme un très grand moment de la discographie schubertienne» (Classics Today France)

«Ces deux grands quatuors à cordes de 1824 sont ici réunis ensemble dans une interprétation absolument renversante du Quatuor Takács. D’un jeu pleinement engagé, ils s’adonnent à merveille aux gammes tourbillonnantes et aux rythmes endiablés de la Jeune fille et la mort, ne relâchant qu’occasionnellement la vive tension de la musique de Schubert. L’équilibre des quatre instruments est très bien ajusté, il y a vraiment un son d’ensemble sans qu’aucun des solistes ne soit exagérément privilégié. Il en résulte que l’on entend magnifiquement bien les voix intermédiaires, le second violon et l’alto se révélant notamment avec des guirlandes et des motifs resplendissants, trop souvent étouffés et négligés dans d’autres versions. Un disque événement à savourer sans plus attendre» (ResMusica.com, France)

„Ein wunderbare Einspielung mit einem Quartett, das vielleicht bislang zu wenig Beachtung fand—Is there really a view of Schubert's String Quartet No 14 that hasn't yet been considered? Is it possible to add to the already countless number of interpretations one that is fresh and new? On hearing this recent recording by the Takács Quartet, the answer has to be 'Yes!' For here less emphasis is placed on Schubert's melodic language, and on the purely songlike, and much more weight is given to the sense of dramatic development so important in this work: an intensive interplay with the formal material, with the expressive power of communication itself. And so the Takács Quartet builds up a musical portrayal as intoxicating as it is charged with emotion, one of a kind that has never been heard before. Beauty of tone is not the main aim here, but rather the harmonious euphony of the different voices, here achieved so superbly: above all in the quartet's second movement, the variations, before melancholy and despair take a rest during the Presto, then culminate completely in the Tarantella of the Finale. The recording of the Quartet No 13, the so-called Rosamunde also shows the same approach of constant urgency, possibly expressing Schubert's intentions far better than the usual meticulously reproduced melodic treasury. A marvellous recording, by a quartet to which perhaps too little attention has been paid so far“ (Ensemble, Germany)
If Schubert’s A minor Quartet is a work pervaded by an air of melancholy, its companion-piece, the String Quartet in D Minor D810 (‘Death and the Maiden’), is one that seems to give vent to despair. The song-fragment on which its slow movement is based, with its subject of youthful mortality, is one that must have given Schubert pause for thought; and the quartet as a whole goes so far as to cast all four of its movements in the minor—a surfeit of sombreness that will not be found in any work by Haydn, Mozart or Beethoven. Not even Tchaikovsky allowed himself to luxuriate in so much unrelieved tragedy in his ‘Pathétique’ Symphony, and we have to look instead to Chopin’s ‘Funeral March’ Sonata to find a parallel case. It is true that Schubert’s variation movement closes with a heart-rending turn to the major—as do the theme and first two variations themselves—but the change is one that serves only to heighten the music’s poignancy.

Indeed, it is the bleakness of the context in which they appear that makes the two extended major-key sections of the ‘Death and the Maiden’ Quartet so moving. Those sections are the slow movement’s fourth variation, and the trio of the scherzo, and Schubert takes particular care to bind them together with the material that surrounds them. The slow movement’s major-mode excursion is joined seamlessly to the ensuing variation in the minor, which continues the music’s ‘rocking’ motion; while the trio’s accompaniment takes over the pervasive rhythm of the scherzo. Given the intensity of the scherzo itself, it is surprising to find that the opening of its second half quotes from a Ländler Schubert had written the previous year.

The quartet’s opening movement is characterized by a continual alternation between tension and relaxation. The triplet rhythm starkly set forth in its very first bars runs through the entire piece as a unifying force; but the main subject also features a calmer continuation—a chorale-like passage that clearly looks forward to the sombre theme of the slow movement to come. The main contrasting theme is a sinuous idea given out by the violins in mellifluous thirds and sixths, above a ‘rocking’ accompaniment from the two lower instruments. The central development section combines the rhythmic elements of both principal subjects, gradually building up the tension until it spills over into the start of the recapitulation, where the austere silences of the work’s beginning are filled in with upward-striving triplets on the three higher instruments. Towards the end, Schubert appears to be drawing the piece to an emphatic close, with a coda in a quicker tempo; but by a stroke of genius he allows the music to return to its original speed, and the piece sinks to a pianissimo close, as though all energy were spent.

For his finale, Schubert provides a tarantella of almost manic exuberance. His model is likely to have been the last movement of Beethoven’s famous ‘Kreutzer’ Sonata, and there are passages in the two works that are remarkably similar. Far more than Beethoven, however, Schubert appears to be extending an invitation to a dance of death. This time, he does allow himself a final peroration that finishes the work in helter-skelter style with an acceleration in tempo, as though the music were spiralling out of control, towards a vortex of doom.

from notes by Misha Donat © 2006

Si le Quatuor en la mineur est empreint de mélancolie, son pendant, le Quatuor à cordes en ré mineur D810 («La jeune fille et la mort») permet à Schubert de laisser, semble-t-il, libre cours à son désespoir. Le fragment de lied sur lequel repose le mouvement lent, avec pour thème la mortalité juvénile, a dû le faire réfléchir; et le quatuor va loin, au point de fondre ses quatre mouvements en mineur—une surabondance de noirceur qu’on ne retrouve nulle part chez Haydn, Mozart ou Beethoven. Même Tchaïkovsky ne se complaira pas dans une si grande tragédie monotone dans sa Symphonie «Pathétique», et c’est vers la Sonate «Marche funèbre» de Chopin que nous devons nous tourner pour trouver un parallèle. Certes, le mouvement de variation de Schubert s’achève sur un tournant déchirant en majeur—tout comme le thème et les deux premières variations—, mais ce changement ne sert qu’à exacerber le caractère poignant de la musique.

Car c’est la désolation de leur contexte qui rend si émouvantes les deux grandes sections en majeur du Quatuor «La jeune fille et la mort». Ces sections—la quatrième variation du mouvement lent et le trio du scherzo—, Schubert prend bien soin de les relier à l’aide du matériau environnant. L’incursion en mode majeur du mouvement lent est accolée sans heurt à la variation suivante, en mineur, qui prolonge l’élan «berçant» de la musique, tandis que l’accompagnement du trio reprend le rythme omniprésent du scherzo. Vu l’intensité de ce dernier, on est surpris d’entendre le début de sa seconde moitié citer un Ländler schubertien de l’année précédente.

Le mouvement initial du quatuor est marqué par une alternance permanente entre tension et relâchement. Le rythme en triolets, exposé sans ambages dans les toute premières mesures, parcourt la pièce comme une force unificatrice; mais le sujet principal présente aussi une continuation plus sereine—un passage de type choral qui attend clairement le thème sombre du mouvement lent à venir. Le thème principal contrastant est une idée flexueuse énoncée en mélodieuses tierces et sixtes aux violons, par-dessus un accompagnement «berçant» aux deux instruments graves. La section de développement centrale combine les éléments rythmiques des deux sujets principaux, augmentant peu à peu la tension jusqu’à la faire déborder sur le commencement de la reprise, où les austères silences du début de l’œuvre sont comblés par des triolets s’évertuant à aller vers le haut, aux trois instruments aigus. Vers la fin, Schubert semble s’acheminer vers une conclusion emphatique, avec une coda sise dans un tempo accéléré; mais, par un coup de génie, il redonne à la musique son allure d’origine, et l’œuvre sombre en une conclusion pianissimo, comme si toute l’énergie avait été épuisée.

En guise de finale, Schubert propose une tarentelle à l’exubérance quasi maniaque, probablement inspirée du dernier mouvement de la fameuse Sonate «à Kreutzer» de Beethoven—ces deux œuvres présentent d’ailleurs des passages remarquablement similaires. Toutefois, Schubert semble pousser bien plus loin que Beethoven son invitation à une danse de la mort: il se permet une péroraison qui achève l’œuvre dans un style désordonné, avec une accélération de tempo, comme si la musique plongeait en vrille, incontrôlée, vers quelque vortex de ténèbres.

extrait des notes rédigées par Misha Donat © 2006
Français: Hyperion Records Ltd

Wenn man Schuberts A-Moll-Quartett als ein von melancholischer Stimmung erfülltes Werk beschreibt, dann muss man sein Begleitstück, das Streichquartett in d-Moll D810 („Der Tod und das Mädchen“), als einen Ausdruck schierer Verzweiflung bezeichnen. Das Liedfragment, auf dem der langsame Satz mit seinem Thema vergänglicher Jugend beruht, hat Schubert offensichtlich zum Grübeln veranlasst, und im gesamten Quartett stehen alle vier Sätze in Moll—ein Übermaß an Trauer, dem man in keinem Werk von Haydn, Mozart oder Beethoven begegnet. Selbst Tschaikowsky hat sich in seiner Sinfonie „Pathétique“ nicht gewagt, in so viel unüberwindlicher Tragik zu schwelgen. Erst in Chopins Sonate in b-Moll (mit Trauermarsch) trifft man auf Vergleichbares. Es stimmt zwar, dass Schuberts Variationssatz mit einer herzerweichenden Wendung nach Dur schließt—wie ja auch das Thema und die ersten zwei Variationen—aber die Wendung dient nur dazu, das Schmerzhafte in der Musik zu vertiefen.

Tatsächlich berühren uns die zwei längeren Durabschnitte im „Tod und das Mädchen“ so stark aufgrund der Düsternis des Zusammenhangs, in dem das Dur erklingt. Diese zwei Abschnitte sind die vierte Variation des langsamen Satzes und das Trio des Scherzos. Schubert bemüht sich stark, diese Abschnitte mit dem sie umgebenden Material zu verschmelzen. Der Abschweifung nach Dur im langsamen Satz ist nahtlos mit der darauf folgenden Variation in Moll verbunden, die die wiegende Bewegung der Musik weiterführt, und im Trio übernimmt die Begleitung den dominierenden Rhythmus des Scherzos. In Anbetracht der Intensität des eigentlichen Scherzos überrascht die Einsicht, dass Schubert für den Anfang der zweiten Scherzohälfte einen Ländler zitiert, den er im Jahr zuvor komponiert hatte.

Der erste Satz des Quartetts zeichnet sich durch einen permanenten Wechsel zwischen Spannung und Entspannung aus. Der gleich in den ersten Takten offen artikulierte Triolenrhythmus läuft durch das ganze Stück und bindet es zusammen. Das Hauptthema hat allerdings auch eine ruhigere Fortsetzung—eine choralartige Passage, die eindeutig voraus auf das düstere Thema des kommenden langsamen Satzes verweist. Das wichtigste kontrastierende Thema ist ein sehniger thematischer Gedanke, der von den Violinen in honigsüßen Terzen und Sexten über einer wiegenden Begleitung auf den zwei tieferen Instrumenten dargeboten wird. Der zentrale Durchführungsabschnitt kombiniert die rhythmischen Elemente der beiden wichtigsten Themen und steigert allmählich die Spannung, bis sie auch den Beginn der Reprise erfasst, wo die strengen Pausen vom Anfang des Werkes mit aufwärts strebenden Triolen auf den drei höheren Instrumenten ausgefüllt werden. Gegen Ende scheint Schubert den Satz mit einer immer schneller vorwärts treibenden Koda zu einem selbstbewussten Abschluss zu führen. Aber dank eines Geniestreiches erlaubt er der Musik, zum Ausgangstempo zurückzukehren, und das Stück sinkt zu einem Ende im pianissimo, als wäre alle Energie verausgabt.

Für seinen Schlusssatz entschied sich Schubert für eine fast manisch ausgelassene Tarantella. Ihr Vorbild war wahrscheinlich der letzte Satz aus Beethovens berühmter Kreutzersonate, und es gibt Passagen in beiden Werken, die sich erstaunlich ähnlich sind. Weit mehr als Beethoven scheint Schubert aber zu einem Todestanz einzuladen. In diesem Satz gestattet er sich selbst jedoch einen virtuosen Redeschluss, der das Werk in immer wilderer Hast beschließt, als ob die Musik außer Kontrolle und in einen Strudel der Verdammung geraten sei.

aus dem Begleittext von Misha Donat © 2006
Deutsch: Elke Hockings

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