Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Quintet for 2 violins, viola & 2 cellos in C major, D. 956 (Op. posth. 163): I. Allegro ma non troppo
2. Quintet for 2 violins, viola & 2 cellos in C major, D. 956 (Op. posth. 163): II. Adagio
3. Quintet for 2 violins, viola & 2 cellos in C major, D. 956 (Op. posth. 163): III. Scherzo: Presto - Trio. Andante sostenuto
4. Quintet for 2 violins, viola & 2 cellos in C major, D. 956 (Op. posth. 163): IV. Allegretto - Pi� allegro - Pi� presto
5. String Quartet No. 13 in A minor ('Rosamunde'), D. 804 (Op. 29): I. Allegro ma non troppo
6. String Quartet No. 13 in A minor ('Rosamunde'), D. 804 (Op. 29): II. Andante
7. String Quartet No. 13 in A minor ('Rosamunde'), D. 804 (Op. 29): III. Menuetto e Trio. Allegretto
8. String Quartet No. 13 in A minor ('Rosamunde'), D. 804 (Op. 29): IV. Allegro moderato

Disc 2:

1. String Quartet No. 15 in G major, D. 887 (Op. posth. 161): I. Allegro molto moderato
2. String Quartet No. 15 in G major, D. 887 (Op. posth. 161): II. Andante un poco moto
3. String Quartet No. 15 in G major, D. 887 (Op. posth. 161): III. Scherzo. Allegro vivace - Trio. Allegretto
4. String Quartet No. 15 in G major, D. 887 (Op. posth. 161): IV. Allegro assai
5. String Quartet No. 14 in D minor ('Death and the Maiden'), D. 810: I. Allegro
6. String Quartet No. 14 in D minor ('Death and the Maiden'), D. 810: II. Andante con moto
7. String Quartet No. 14 in D minor ('Death and the Maiden'), D. 810: III. Scherzo e Trio. Allegro molto
8. String Quartet No. 14 in D minor ('Death and the Maiden'), D. 810: IV. Presto - Prestissimo

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #164151 in Music
• Released on: 2004-06-01
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .25 pounds

Customer Reviews

Excellent performances, great bargain
Some of the EMI budget twofers are not great choices even at the price, but some are and this one certainly is. These are really superb performances of the last three Schubert string quartets and the great C major string quintet. As you might expect, it's because the first movement repeats are not taken that EMI is able to get these four works onto two CDs. The Quartetsatz is not included.

The Hungarian Quartet plays with a robust sound, not super-refined but with excellent intonation. They are dramatic without being too driven and have a good deal of warmth and sentiment without overdoing it. This is not precious Schubert.

Joined by cellist László Varga, they offer an especially dramatic, flowing, lively performance of the quintet, a performance that may be my favorite of the several recordings of it in my collection (the others being Hollywood-Reher, Alberni-Igloi, Casals-Stern-Schneider-Katims-Tortelier, and Emerson-Rostropovich). Less introspective than some other versions, this performance makes total dramatic and musical sense to me, with the introspective sections having particular power because they're such a contrast to the more aggressive, extroverted parts of the performance.

These performances were not part of a cycle; they date from between 1958 and 1970 and were made in two different venues. Despite that, the sound quality is pretty consistent. Though not state of the art, it is very good, with all the performances sounding as if they were recorded in a space with a nicely open and resonant sound. I'm pleased to say that they were not too closely miked. I do sometimes get tired of hearing performers' every breath on some more recent recordings. The only reservation I have is that there could be greater dynamic range.

This may not be the only late Schubert you'll ever need or want, but it's truly first-rate and at the price it's a steal. Whether as an introduction to these great works or as alternate versions to add to others you already have, I recommend it very highly.

listening pleasure
This is a first class recording of Schubert's great chamber music. Well worth getting for your listening pleasure.

From adolescence to the valley of shadows!
Whom the Gods love, die young. But with Schubert I guess he was the most beloved of their protégés.

Every time I listen some of these distinguished Schubert's Quartets I am immediately conveyed to new musical horizons, in which the lyricism is just a part of the huge background. These quartets reveal by themselves the immanence of the cosmic breadth, a visible inspiration for Bruckner.

The advisable disposition to listen these works is making with the Greek approach, in which the wholeness prevailed over the existence, and try as soon as possible to give out oneself of the accustomed process of categorization in which we tend to judge and analyse the profane issues.

That's and not other it will be the only way to achieve to enjoy and approach the apparent elusiveness, incorporeal nature and evanescence of these emblematic corpus of these notable String Quartets.

So when in the case of Schubert, who was always possessed and gifted by a sublime and Dionysian inspiration one can say he was truly immersed into a ceaseless epic of transcendence.