The string quartet has been an important medium for Sir James MacMillan since his formative years. From the autobiographical to the abstract, each of his—to date—three numbered examples is a major addition to the repertoire.
CDA68196 70 minutes 56 seconds
‘Excellent throughout, the Royal Quartet impart a brittle edge to the sound that brings MacMillan’s quartets closer to mid-century European modernists such as Lutosławski and Penderecki. But there are ... BBC Music Magazine ‘The Royal String Quartet deliver this music [No 1] with a full-on level of intensity, culminating in a suitably manic and explosive ending … again, the Royal String Quartet takes no prisoners in ...