In Concert 20/5/2024 - Mozart and Haydn String Quartets

[AuntDaisy]

A welcome In Concert last night with, shock horror, classical composers. "Live" music plus a lovely Beethoven filler. (Why does LvB wind music always cheer me up?)

Mozart and Haydn String Quartets
Radio 3 in Concert

Recorded live at LSO St Luke's in April and May two internationally renowned string quartets, the Norwegian Engegård Quartet and Quatuor Voce from France, play classics of the repertoire by Haydn and Mozart.

Mozart’s String Quartets K 464 and K 465 are the final two of a set of six dedicated to Haydn after Mozart had studied and been deeply impressed by Haydn’s groundbreaking Op. 33 Quartets. The “Dissonance” Quartet got its moniker from its famous bleak opening, where unresolved harmonic clashes sound as each instrument enters.

The “Emperor” Quartet is from Haydn’s last complete set of String Quartets. In the late 1790s the Haydn was acknowledged as Europe’s greatest living composer, father of the String Quartet and the Symphony, with the newly written and hugely popular oratorio The Creation storming the Continent. The Quartet gets its nickname from the tune used in the second movement, a self-quotation of an anthem written for the Austrian emperor Franz II which eventually became the national anthem of Austria-Hungary and then Germany.

Presented by Tom Service.

Mozart: String Quartet in C, K 465 “Dissonance”
Engegård Quartet
Mozart: String Quartet in A, K 464
Haydn: String Quartet No 62 in C, Op 76 No 3 “Emperor”
Quatuor Voce

[smittims]

I was amused to see they had to tell me that these players are 'internationally-renowned'; I'd not heard of either of them. Perhaps it's just their way; everything has to be 'award-winning'. I'm reminded of Woody Allen's 'he's a genius, she's a genius; you should listen to some stupid people for a change; you might learn something'.

Carping apart, though, I was pleased to see an evening concert of string quartets, and as I ususally listen to these particular works played by people long dead, I mean to catch up on this one when I can. I do hope they play with just a little vibrato and portamento, though.

[AuntDaisy]

I was amused to see they had to tell me that these players are 'internationally-renowned'; I'd not heard of either of them. Perhaps it's just their way; everything has to be 'award-winning'. I'm reminded of Woody Allen's 'he's a genius, she's a genius; you should listen to some stupid people for a change; you might learn something'.

Carping apart, though, I was pleased to see an evening concert of string quartets, and as I ususally listen to these particular works played by people long dead, I mean to catch up on this one when I can. I do hope they play with just a little vibrato and portamento, though.

The Engegård Quartet and Quatuor Voce were new to me as well.
I enjoyed your Woody Allen quote. "Everybody has won and all must have prizes," declared the dodo (sounding like an over-bouncy Tom Service).

Bit of a swizz about the beautiful Beethoven wind quintet filler - it was from CD, but TS didn't explain this, just gushed about LvB.

Overall, a very enjoyable Concert - hoping for more like it.
Looking forward to your comments, smittims, on vibrato and portamento (which, I'm ashamed to say, I know little about).

[Ein Heldenleben]

I was amused to see they had to tell me that these players are 'internationally-renowned'; I'd not heard of either of them. Perhaps it's just their way; everything has to be 'award-winning'. I'm reminded of Woody Allen's 'he's a genius, she's a genius; you should listen to some stupid people for a change; you might learn something'.

Carping apart, though, I was pleased to see an evening concert of string quartets, and as I ususally listen to these particular works played by people long dead, I mean to catch up on this one when I can. I do hope they play with just a little vibrato and portamento, though.

Good concert that. I wasn’t really on vibrato watch but it’s horses for courses - the opening of the dissonance needs a thinned out , vibratoless sound for max effect doesn’t it? But playing the Emperor’s Hymn without some sweetening seems like lèse-majesté.

[oddoneout]

A welcome In Concert last night with, shock horror, classical composers

.
That was my thought too on seeing the listing. Much to my annoyance, and partly through having got completely out of the habit of listening to the evening offerings, I managed to miss the dissonance bit - drat. Never mind, the rest was worth hearing.
The performers were not names I recognised but then I don't hear much quartet music these days so that's not surprising really.

[smittims]

I enjoyed hearing these players; this is very difficult music to play well, and they did play well.

It seemed to me that neither of them were very 'HIPP', that is , they sounded as if they had steel strings and used some vibrato and just a little poratmento at some points, just enough to give the music life. I thought the Voce seemed to be trying to use less vibrato than the Engegard, though there's very little difference. I thought the Engegard were a bit too fast in the opening movement of the C major quartet; it sounded a bit rushed.

Apart from that they sounded not very different from what I'm used to, though I should add that the most recent recordings I have of this music are from 25-35 years ago: the Hagen in Mozart and the Angeles (whom I like vey much) in the Haydn.

[richardfinegold]

I was amused to see they had to tell me that these players are 'internationally-renowned'; I'd not heard of either of them. Perhaps it's just their way; everything has to be 'award-winning'. I'm reminded of Woody Allen's 'he's a genius, she's a genius; you should listen to some stupid people for a change; you might learn something:.

I was thinking the exact same thing. Just once I’d like to hear musicians introduced as “a bunch of hacks from nowhere, because we couldn’t get anyone important “

[richardfinegold]

On the subject of vibrato, and at the risk of hijacking this thread, I have a Canadian friend who has worked as a recording engineer and worked with the chamber orchestra Tafelmusik. He extravagantly praises their set of Beethoven symphonies, which he helped record. I’m trying to set aside his obvious bias and listen through the set. The ones that I’ve heard are quite good but one of the problems I have is the lack of vibrato. The exposed string passages just sort of sit there and don’t seem to sing, and the phrases seem to end before they should.
I mention this because the Beethoven that I have listened to the most recently has been the Jordi Savall cycle, which most decidedly does not sound this way despite J.S. credentials as a HIPP performer. Are his players using modern instruments? Greater number of players? Are they phrasing differently?

edit-mods-perhaps create a separate thread devoted to vibrato and move this there?

[Ein Heldenleben]

I was thinking the exact same thing. Just once I’d like to hear musicians introduced as “a bunch of hacks from nowhere, because we couldn’t get anyone important “

That ain’t gonna happen. The best recent example is when a very eminent pianist absolutely mangled some easyish Schubert on In Tune . The presenter politely thanked him and name checked him. Fair enough - no point further embarrassing a live guest.

The bigging up of performers on Radio 3 is extraordinary. No one is ever , outside record Review , criticised . There’s more criticism on Radio 1 - or used to be - when a DJ didn’t like a new single. I think Kenny Everett would play in a scratch skating stylus effect and throw / break the vinyl.

I’m not suggesting that the announcer draw attention to an indifferent live performance but does everyone have to be lavished with praise?

Can some one also explain Sean Rafferty’s obsession with the studio Steinway - endlessly plugged - and the provenance of old violins especially Strads and Guaneri’s . What they are playing is of little interest - it’s almost a fetish.