String Quartet No. 4, op. 83; String Quartet No. 7, op. 108; Piano Quintet in G minor, op. 57[a].
Schidlof Quartet: Ofer Falk (violin 1), Rafael Todes (violin 2), Graham Oppenheimer (viola), Oleg Kogan (cello), Ian Brown (piano)[a].
Linn CKD 065. DDD. TT 69:26.
Recorded Big School, Christ's Hospital, Horsham, UK, 3-5 October 1996.

String Quartet No. 2 in A major, op. 68; String Quartet No. 3 in F major, op. 73.
St. Petersburg String Quartet: Alla Aranovskaya (violin 1), Ilya Teplyakov (violin 2), Konstantin Kats (viola), Leonid Shukaev (cello).
Hyperion CDA67153. DDD. TT 66:43.
Recorded St. Petersburg Recording Studio, April 1999.

String Quartet No. 4 in D major, op. 83; String Quartet No. 6 in G major, op. 101; String Quartet No. 8 in C minor, op. 110.
St. Petersburg String Quartet.
Hyperion CDA67154. DDD. TT 69:40.
Recorded St. Petersburg Recording Studio, April 1999.

String Quartet No. 3 in F major, op. 73; Beethoven: String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, op. 18, No. 4.
Cailin Quartet: Clara Baek (violin 1), Sophia Baek (violin 2), Stine Hasbirk (viola), Therese Astrand (cello).
Classico CLASSCD 265. -D. TT 53:14.
Recorded 1998.

The Schidlof Quartet supply technically assured performances of all three works on their disc, and Linn's recording sounds admirably natural. In the end, though, I find that the Schidlofs play things too safe in the two quartets, with lax tempos and bland articulation. They are, for example, unwilling or unable to whip up the kind of steely intensity in the Seventh Quartet's third movement that one hears with a team like the Shostakovich Quartet (Olympia OCD 532), and phrasing throughout that work is excessively deliberate.

The distributor's promotional material suggests that Shostakovich's works have deep resonance with this all-Jewish quartet, pointing to the hints of Jewish chant in the main theme of the Fourth Quartet's finale. It is certainly the case that they maintain a forward flow throughout this quartet, but in the second movement this slows to a sluggish trickle, and there isn't a trace of turbulence in the third. Even the aforementioned Jewish-sounding passages in the fourth movement have rarely sounded less idiomatic. My recurring impression is that this performance is simply too complacent.

As if the addition of pianist Ian Brown injects some much-needed fire into their veins, the Schidlofs are more inspiring in the Piano Quintet's first and last movements, though as one might predict by this point in the review, the Schidlof/Brown Scherzo is utterly untroubled. Across the board, the Esbjerg Ensemble's presentation is more emotionally involving, especially in the Fugue and Intermezzo, which sound prosaic on Linn's release.

No complaints of underplaying adhere to the first two volumes in the St. Petersburg String Quartet's projected intégrale. All five quartets here receive powerhouse performances, supplying the very same level of full-frontal assault one obtains from the Borodins (BMG Melodiya 74321 40711 2). The St. Petersburgs' tone is splendidly rich and meaty, and though the musicians and engineer don't trouble to sanitise these performances, one hears cross-hair targeting of virtually every note. All this is captured in glorious Hyperion sound.

The recital of the Second Quartet possesses all of the qualities that permeate the different performances on these two discs, with its robust string tone, unhesitating plunge into forte passages and sensitivity to colour. A more rapt atmosphere in the Recitative and Romance would be sensible, but the outer movements are strongly characterised.

In the Third Quartet's performance one is struck by the natural handing off of voices from one instrument to another.

The St. Petersburgs are sympathetic to the work's many mood shifts, and there is evidence of long-range planning, with restrained attack in the second movement to save the all-out firestorm for the third movement. Here is a romantic, very "Russian" take on the Adagio, and a bucolic ride through the closing movement that provides stark contrast for its climax.

The renditions on Hyperion's second volume are entirely consistent with what came before. An almost Brucknerian wall of sound opens the first movement of Quartet No. 4, but then the St. Petersburgs take time to linger in the interludes. The second movement, Andantino, is positively ravishing. The Jewish motifs in the finale could be rendered with more sinuosity, but still have a strong impact by being belted out so forcefully.

The Sixth Quartet is the most desirable performance in the lot, thanks to its striking sense of momentum. What an irresistible rip tide carries the listener through the first movement - it's almost a pity leaving for the second movement, though that soon captivates at its own tender pace. Not to be missed either is the sheer beauty of the following Lento, where again it is impossible not to luxuriate in the textures of the St. Petersburgs' sound. This performance alone is worth the price of admission.

How highly you'll rate this disc's recording of the Eighth Quartet will depend on how unnerving you believe it should be. This is certainly an exciting and captivating performance, with a gloomy opening movement, bitter violence in the second, an eerie dance in the third with a particularly creepy E pedal on the cello from Fig. 46, plus well-judged juxtapositions of depressive brooding and harsh hammer blows in the closing movements. What I missed, however, was the insupportable desperation one hears with the Shostakovich Quartet (Olympia OCD 533).

Indeed, this is a proviso that applies to my assessment of all of these readings: they never suggest the gnawing insecurity buried in the scores. Even the Andantino of the Fourth Quartet, as impassioned as it is, is sung with a full belly in a warm room. I could not shake the feeling that, without being complacent, these readings take too much at face value. Playing of this quality can hold its head high in any company, so I have no hesitation in giving these releases a thumbs up, but for the reasons just mentioned, they would not be my first choice in this repertoire.

I cannot imagine how Hyperion could improve on their recording, but as Ian MacDonald correctly points out, Robert Matthew Walker's commentary for these works mars the overall production. His notes speak of the fictitious war-hero cum cultural despot "Marshal Zhdanov", Matthew Walker's unhappy mix-up of Marshal Georgy Zhukov with Andrei Zhdanov. Confusingly, the section on the Eighth Quartet repeats the standard line that seeing Dresden's ruins "directly inspired" Shostakovich to write the work in just three days (despite the fact that the composer had visited the city ten years earlier without being thus inspired) - then, in the very next paragraph, comes the non sequitur that the wealth of self-quotations is explained by the fact that Shostakovich included himself among the victims of fascism and war in the quartet's dedication, and that he regarded this as his last work because he intended to commit suicide after being forced to join the Communist Party. One hopes that Hyperion demand more accurate and integrated annotation in future issues.

It may seem utterly unfair of me to compare the youthful Cailin Quartet alongside musicians the calibre of the St. Petersburg Quartet, but you'll find their CDs in the same bin at the record store, costing the same amount. Furthermore, the Cailins had been playing together for five years at the time of this recording. Still, these performances sound like heroic efforts of youth musicians, rather than mature conceptions of seasoned performers. The Cailins engage Shostakovich's Third Quartet bravely, but work hard just to make it through, never transcending the many technical challenges far enough to offer real musical insights. Indeed, the Cailins' technical skills are frequently stretched past their breaking point. There are too many serious inaccuracies to enumerate here, with wrong notes and stumbling entries littering the Moderato and Allegro, and not hard to find elsewhere. The Cailins do possess a winning sweetness of tone in Beethoven's Opus 18, No. 4, but here again I do not see why one would select this disc when so many world-class alternatives are available. If you wish to support a young team with a great deal of heart, by all means purchase this CD, but if you are seeking musical depth, look elsewhere.

W. Mark Roberts
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DSCH No. 13.
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