[net.audio] Beethoven quartets?

ark@alice.UucP (Andrew Koenig) (08/30/85)

I'm thinking of buying a CD recording of the Beethoven quartets.
Right now there are two available:  the Smetana Quartet [Denon,
almost complete but missing (probably) one disc] and the Berg
Quartet [Angel, complete but possibly reissues of old recordings]

Has anyone out there listened to these recordings?  Comments?
Is there some other recording in progress worth waiting for?
(I'd really like to hear the Guarneri Quartet have a go at it)

knf@druxo.UUCP (FricklasK) (08/31/85)

->I'm thinking of buying a CD recording of the Beethoven quartets.
->Right now there are two available:  the Smetana Quartet [Denon,
->almost complete but missing (probably) one disc] and the Berg
->Quartet [Angel, complete but possibly reissues of old recordings]
->
->Has anyone out there listened to these recordings?  Comments?
->Is there some other recording in progress worth waiting for?
->(I'd really like to hear the Guarneri Quartet have a go at it)

I have the Angel recording and is is excellent, good mastering, etc.
   '`'`
   Ken
   '`'`

mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor) (09/01/85)

A couple of months ago I heard an interview with the Orford Quartet,
who are about to do a complete CD set of the Beethoven Quartets.  THAT
should be worth listening to!

What was interesting was the discussion on how very different it was
to record for CD than for LP (They have an LP set from some years ago).
I don't remember too many details, but the impression was that the
performance result should be much better (partly because of their
particular producer, partly because of the recording requirements
for CD).
-- 

Martin Taylor
{allegra,linus,ihnp4,floyd,ubc-vision}!utzoo!dciem!mmt
{uw-beaver,qucis,watmath}!utcsri!dciem!mmt

jho@ihu1m.UUCP (Yosi Hoshen) (09/01/85)

> I'm thinking of buying a CD recording of the Beethoven quartets.
> Right now there are two available:  the Smetana Quartet [Denon,
> almost complete but missing (probably) one disc] and the Berg
> Quartet [Angel, complete but possibly reissues of old recordings]
> 
> Has anyone out there listened to these recordings?  Comments?
> Is there some other recording in progress worth waiting for?
> (I'd really like to hear the Guarneri Quartet have a go at it)

I have all the Smetana recordings of the Beethoven Quartets.
All the quartets are available on CD except #16.  Most recently
#14 Op 131 came out.  I know that all the quartets have been
recorded by the Smetana (Josef Suk who collaborates with the
Smetana Quartet has told me that the Smetana Quartet and the
Suk Trio have Completed the recording of Beethoven's Quartets
and Trios for Denon).  The Smetana Quartet recording of Beethoven's
Quartets and Mozart's Quintet (Josef Suk) are my most favorite
recordings.   The performance as well as the quality of the
recorded sound are unmatched by any other chamber music recording.

Denon seems to be the only company who is really committed to 
chamber music recording on CD.  I have tried DGG for the
Death and the Maiden quartet (Schubert) with the Amadeus Quartet. 
I was disappointed by both the performance and the sound.  I 
intend to buy the Smetana recording of this piece  as soon as
it will be out.  I have the Berg Quartet recording of Schuberts
String Quintet.  The performance is good but the CD tends to be
harsh for the first violin.

Besides the Berg and the Smetana Quartets recordings of Beethoven's
quartets, I think there is another complete recording of these
quartets on CBS Sony (Julliard Quartet?).
However, some of these recordings have not received favorable review.

-- 
Yosi Hoshen, AT&T Bell Laboratories
Naperville, Illinois,  Mail: ihnp4!ihu1m!jho

rfg@hound.UUCP (R.GRANTGES) (09/04/85)

[]
I have 3 CDs of the Smetana quartets. I'm no judge. They sound
prety good to me .. except for one thing ... The first movement
of Number nine: One microphone was misplaced too close to the
schnozola of one of the players who forgot to take his allergy pill.
The result is the sound is screwed up with randomly placed labored
breaths.  Now, if there had been real "committment" they could have
redone the movement.  Did they? Nope. They moved the mike and/or
gave the player a pill. Cheaper that way.  On CD's you can hear
<everything> - darn it.

-- 

"It's the thought, if any, that counts!"  Dick Grantges  hound!rfg

doug@prime.UUCP (Douglas Hamilton) (09/06/85)

> ->I'm thinking of buying a CD recording of the Beethoven quartets.
> ->Right now there are two available:  the Smetana Quartet [Denon,
> ->almost complete but missing (probably) one disc] and the Berg
> ->Quartet [Angel, complete but possibly reissues of old recordings]
> ->
> ->Has anyone out there listened to these recordings?  Comments?

I have the Smetana recording and find it to be very enjoyable.  For
that matter, I have been extremely pleased with *ALL* the Smetana
recordings on Denon, especially the Haydn & Mozart Quintets with Josef Suk.
The performances are (to my ears) consistently beautiful - the
instruments seem to really "sing."  The Denon recordings are
consistently top quality - very quiet and very "live."  Close your
eyes and you feel you could reach out and touch the individual
instruments.  Can't comment on the Berg recording per se, but will
note that (again, to my ears) the Angel recordings (and I have many
of them also) never seem to be nearly as good as Denon's.
-- 
Douglas Hamilton       Prime Computer,Inc.
617-626-1700 x3956     Video Products Group
                       492 Old Connecticut Path
                       Framingham, MA  10701

{seismo,ihnp4,allegra,ut-sally}!harvard!prime!doug

rwfi@ur-tut.UUCP (Robert Fink) (09/25/85)

Have heard Smetana Qt's version of Beethoven Op 130 (with the Grosse Fuge)
and like it very much; on the other hand, perhaps you should just hold
out for the Quartetto Italiano!