American String Quartets

[Madame Suggia]

Fond memories enjoying the Philip Glass string quartets in the car.

I had the Kronos Quartet on CD but lent it, never to see again.
The recent Naxos recordings of it are rather good.

[rauschwerk]

Hyperion will soon bring out the second quartet of Leo Ornstein.

[pastoralguy]

Fond memories enjoying the Philip Glass string quartets in the car.

I had the Kronos Quartet on CD but lent it, never to see again.
The recent Naxos recordings of it are rather good.

Am listening to the Kronos playing these works just now. I've never heard them before and, by coincidence, borrowed the ten cd 'Glassbox' from the library yesterday. Interesting pieces.

[EdgeleyRob]

Having received a £10 qobuz credit for taking out a Gramophone Digital Club subscription (monthly electronic mag, mag archive back to 1923, & full reviews archive), I fancied redeeming it without delay!

One area of music that I have little knowledge of is the American string quartet.

I hear that George Rochberg is something of a pioneer in this repertoire.

Does anyone have any recommendations?

I don't have too many on my shelves Beefy.

I can recommend Barber Op 11,Diamond (there was a thread on this composer recently) especially Nos 3 & 10.

Picked this up on a whim a few years back



Seem to remember being impressed by it ,I haven't listened to it in ages,one for his weekend's playlist.

[Dave2002]

Any Beach - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAOFlbjkm4g

Joan Tower - https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...98F94CB67531F0 plus a few others - up to at least number 4.

Jennifer Higdon - Impressions - for string quartet

[Beef Oven!]

I don't have too many on my shelves Beefy.

I can recommend Barber Op 11,Diamond (there was a thread on this composer recently) especially Nos 3 & 10.

Picked this up on a whim a few years back



Seem to remember being impressed by it ,I haven't listened to it in ages,one for his weekend's playlist.

Thanks Rob.

By coincidence I spun a much loved old CD of mine by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra that contains a Jacob Druckman piece, 'Nor Spell Nor Charm' (1990).

[Roehre]

I've enjoyed Walter Piston's String Quartets.

There are three sets of 2xCD American SQs on Vox

http://www.amazon.com/The-Early-String-Quartet-U-S-A/dp/B000001K35

http://www.amazon.co.uk/American-String-Quartets-Kohon-Quartet/dp/B000001K3X

http://www.amazon.com/American-Strin.../dp/B000001K50

And these are re-incarnations of earlier released sets with identical contents, on Vox as well as Turnabout labels.

[richardfinegold]

I've enjoyed Walter Piston's String Quartets.

There are three sets of 2xCD American SQs on Vox

http://www.amazon.com/The-Early-String-Quartet-U-S-A/dp/B000001K35

http://www.amazon.co.uk/American-String-Quartets-Kohon-Quartet/dp/B000001K3X

http://www.amazon.com/American-Strin.../dp/B000001K50

There is also a fine Naxos recording, by the Harlem String Quartet

[Beef Oven!]

UPDATE: I used the qobuz £10 voucher on this..........




It's not very American and it's a bit wanting on the quartet front. I blame Bryn for posting about this music last week - I couldn't get it out of my head!!

[Pulcinella]

There's this box set too, recently disposed of to a fellow forumite.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Unknown-String-Quartets-Vol-1-Quartet/dp/B000024Q00

Contents visible (just) by clicking on the image of the box insert. Haven't checked if all American, but seem to think they were.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Contents visible (just) by clicking on the image of the box insert. Haven't checked if all American, but seem to think they were.

George CHADWICK; Charles LOEFFLER (born in Germany, became an American citizen 30 years before he wrote the Quartet in this set); Charles GRIFFES; Benjamin FRANKLIN (yes - that one!); Danile MASON; Arthur FOOTE (?six inches?); Henry HADLEY (no relation, AFAIK, to English Patrick). Mostly written in the second decade of the Twentieth Century, with the exception of the Chadwick (1895) and Franklin (no date, but he died in 1790 - the pieces here are described "as originally written for open strings" - six-and-a-half minutes of bare fifths! The ancestry of La Monte Young, perhaps?

Interesting collection, Pulcie - I might just ...

[Pulcinella]

George CHADWICK; Charles LOEFFLER (born in Germany, became an American citizen 30 years before he wrote the Quartet in this set); Charles GRIFFES; Benjamin FRANKLIN (yes - that one!); Danile MASON; Arthur FOOTE (?six inches?); Henry HADLEY (no relation, AFAIK, to English Patrick). Mostly written in the second decade of the Twentieth Century, with the exception of the Chadwick (1895) and Franklin (no date, but he died in 1790 - the pieces here are described "as originally written for open strings" - six-and-a-half minutes of bare fifths! The ancestry of La Monte Young, perhaps?

Interesting collection, Pulcie - I might just ...

Looks like I should have put them on my iPod before passing them on.......
But I know I could 'borrow' them back!

[Roehre]

George CHADWICK; Charles LOEFFLER (born in Germany, became an American citizen 30 years before he wrote the Quartet in this set); Charles GRIFFES; Benjamin FRANKLIN (yes - that one!); Danile MASON; Arthur FOOTE (?six inches?); Henry HADLEY (no relation, AFAIK, to English Patrick). Mostly written in the second decade of the Twentieth Century, with the exception of the Chadwick (1895) and Franklin (no date, but he died in 1790 - the pieces here are described "as originally written for open strings" - six-and-a-half minutes of bare fifths! The ancestry of La Monte Young, perhaps?

Interesting collection, Pulcie - I might just ...

It's a set I've got on my shelves since 1998
It's an earlier version of one of those mentioned on this tread before (post 14, this set. with excellently readable contents )
vol.2 is nice too, btw, but includes emigrés from Europe (Bloch, Hindemith) as well

[Beef Oven!]

George Rochberg - String Quartet #3

Written in 1971 and premiered on 15th May 1972 by the string quartet on this recording.

[Beef Oven!]

Quincy Porter - String Quartet #7
Ives Quartet

16 bit download Qobuz