December 28, 2009

Kolisch_Quartet_78e18.jpg

(The Kolisch String Quartet - The Second Viennese School owes a lot to this bunch)

Apologies for being a day late on this post. Blame the Holiday schedule and the lack of sleep - all good intentions, but I managed to pass out before I could finish this last night. And it's too good to leave until next week.

Today it's the traditional Mozart done by the anything-but-traditional Kolisch String Quartet. Led by Arnold Schoenberg's brother-in-law Rudolf Kolisch with members of the former Lener String Quartet (Jeno Lener and Benar Heifetz), The Kolisch Quartet was a key element in furthering the cause of composers Schoenberg and Alban Berg and in fact, the whole Second Viennese School. A lonely road at times, The Kolish Quartet were one of the great virtuoso ensembles who combined the world of the adventuresome with the world of the traditional, as is evidence by this 1938 recording for Victor (DM-407) of the B-Flat Major k.589 String Quartet of Mozart. In a way, it was recordings like these that made the private and subscription recordings of new works possible - and the Kolisch Quartet were able to straddle both worlds and serve both equally well.

oh . . .and by the way . .

if you can.

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