Music / kammermusik

The piano quartets


Reviews (28)


The guardian

d. 17. Aug. 2023

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Erica Jeal

d. 17. Aug. 2023

"There's no real star: this is real chamber music. And yet, first among equals, Colli's piano is the centre of gravity, setting the tone with quiet grace when he's foregrounded, and sounding characterful and eloquent even when he's in the background; he never has to push his way through ... This is chamber-music playing that really has something to say, and it's never complacent".


AllMusic

2007

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By

James Leonard

2007

"The Nash Ensemble here adds another superb disc to its ample discography with these 2005 and 2006 recordings of Mozart's piano quartets ... ASV's digital sound is close but cool and full but detailed".


Presto classical

d. 2. Sep. 2018

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By

Katherine Cooper

d. 2. Sep. 2018

"Editor's choices - August 2018: Characterful, congenial performances from Barenboim and three alumni of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra (including his violinist son, Michael) - the tuttis have a big-boned, near-orchestral quality, but there's no lack of delicacy when required. The pianist is very much Master of Ceremonies in the concerto-like opening of the G minor Quartet, but knows exactly when to take the spotlight and when to recede".


Presto classical

d. 31. Aug. 2023

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By

Katherine Cooper

d. 31. Aug. 2023

"Editor's choice - August 2023: All four musicians here are star soloists in their own rights, but there's no sense of jostling egos in these warmly collegiate performances - just the sense of ideas being exchanged in the moment, and everyone being willing to step aside a little when a colleague is offered a moment to shine. Dynamic markings are often taken to the extreme, and ornamentation is liberal but never unstylish: Colli's exuberance and lavish rubato might polarise some listeners, but personally I loved it".


MusicWeb international

2023 October

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Philip Borg-Wheeler

2023 October

"It must be said that these performances of two of Mozart's greatest chamber works are very good ... There is much to admire in these players' execution; I just do not care for their interpretative approach. For those who find this style attractive or refreshing, this disc will be recommendable ... Normally I am a fan of highly imaginative musicianship, but here I believe a straightforward, instinctive approach is more likely to succeed".


Kristeligt dagblad

d. 29. Oct. 2018

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By

Peter Dürrfeld

d. 29. Oct. 2018

"Den nye cd er ganske enkelt skøn: Daniel Barenboim sidder ved klaveret, mens hans søn Michael ... tager sig af violinstemmen, og to andre WEDOmedlemmer ... supplerer Barenboim senior og junior. Alle fire er fremragende Mozart-musikere, og det herlige ved denne live-indspilning fra foråret 2017 i Berlin er, at der ikke på noget tidspunkt overfortolkes, det er Mozart fra allerøverste hylde ... Man kan kun konkludere, at de to klaverkvartetter er et vidunderligt tvillingepar, og at her er tale om en cd, der vil få mange ture i afspilleren og lyse op på grå efterårsdage".


Politiken

d. 14. Nov. 2018

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By

Thomas Michelsen

d. 14. Nov. 2018

"Barenboim sidder selv ved klaveret i selskab med tre yngre strygere, hvoraf violinisten er hans søn, Michael Barenboim. Emnet er kvartetter af Mozart, og den alvorlige mol-musik klinger saftigt og stilsikkert, selv om strygerlyden er fuldfed, og musikerne ikke spiller på periodeinstrumenter ... Her er god energi, og de fire spillende er lydhøre og disciplinerede. Sammen leverer de levende mainstreamfortolkninger af Mozartværker, vi kender og elsker, og sønnens violinspil er smukt ... Man bliver ikke chokeret af deres bud på Mozart. Men man bliver heller ikke holdt hen med ligegyldig musiceren".


Berlingske tidende

d. 10. Jan. 2006

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Søren H. Schauser

d. 10. Jan. 2006

"Fortolkningerne hører måske ikke til verdens mest fantastiske ... kvartetten i g-mol spillet dejlig nodetro og uden farlige stød".


Politiken

d. 7. Feb. 2006

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By

Jan Jacoby

d. 7. Feb. 2006

"Et finslebet og ambitiøst ensemble, der understreger kontrasten mellem de to værker. Es-duren spilles let og legende med fokus på ideernes charme og sangbarhed og på formens smidige forvandlinger ... G-mol-værket tackler kvartetten med højspændt rytme, voldsomme accenter og dynamiske kontraster, anspændt fremaddrivende tempi og en ganske pågående klang. Det er dramatisk, men det er for meget".


Politiken

d. 18. June 2019

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By

Henrik Friis (f. 1978)

d. 18. June 2019

"Ofte oplever man, hvor svært det er for store solister med enestående teknik og musikalsk indsigt at nedtone egoet ... Det er ikke tilfældet for Baiba Skride og hendes pianistsøster, Launa, når de teamer op i en klaverkvartet med et par af de lovende solister på den europæiske scene ... De fire kvinder har dannet en kvartet, der spiller tight og energisk - og som frem for alt klinger med en samlet stemme, selv når musikken folder sig ud i vildt postyr og indre drama hos Mozart, Mahler og Brahms, på deres nye debutalbum ... Selv om tingene går voldsomt til, kan man fornemme musikerne trække vejret roligt og samlet gennem musikken".


Jyllands-posten

d. 9. Jan. 2006

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By

John Christiansen

d. 9. Jan. 2006

"Hvis Mozartåret fortsat giver os den slags forfriskende indspilninger, skal man ikke frygte overmætning".


Kristeligt dagblad

d. 15. Feb. 2006

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By

Bernhard Lewkovitch

d. 15. Feb. 2006


Jyllands-posten

d. 19. Apr. 2006

By

By

John Christiansen

d. 19. Apr. 2006


Kristeligt dagblad

d. 3. May 2006

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By

Bernhard Lewkovitch

d. 3. May 2006


Jyllands-posten

d. 26. June 2006

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By

Jakob Levinsen

d. 26. June 2006


Jyllands-posten

d. 27. June 2005

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d. 27. June 2005


BBC music magazine

2018 November

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Michael Tanner (musikanmelder)

2018 November

"Chamber choice: There is no question from the start of the guiding force here: Daniel Barenboim, a great Mozart player early in his career, and once more now, manages to hold things together while being free with rubato and altogether spontaneous, so that this is quintessential chamber music-making ... One of the many delights of these performances is that they recognise the intimate and non-portentous nature of the works ... Alltogether: An enchanting disc".


Fono Forum

2018 Dezember

By

By

Carlos María Solare

2018 Dezember

"Beide Aufführungen zeichnen sich durch das fantasievolle Spiel aller Beteiligten aus. Dass die meisten Impulse von Daniel Barenboim ausgehen, liegt in der Natur der Sache, denn einerseits ist er der Seniorpartner des Ensembles, andererseits sind die Werke an sich bis zu einem gewissen Grad verkappte Klavierkonzerte ... Daniel Barenboim gestaltet die zahlreichen virtuosen Läufe kristallklar und mit perfektem Timing ... Die drei Streicher ... erweisen sich als starke, aber teamfähige Persönlichkeiten, die optimal aufeinander eingestimmt sind".


Fono Forum

2024 Januar

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By

Elisabeth Richter

2024 Januar


BBC music magazine

2023 October

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By

Misha Donat

2023 October

"The players on this new recording seem determined to bring out every ounce of its drama ... to wring maximum expression out of every phrase in a manner that's stylistically at odds with the music ... These are clearly talented players, and if only they had allowed the music to speak for itself their performances would have been a good deal more satisfying".


Fono Forum

2019 Juni

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By

Martin Demmler

2019 Juni

"Als Duo hatten sich die Schwestern Baiba und Lauma Skride längst etabliert ... Es sind vier Musikerinnen der Extraklasse ... Frisch, schlank und unsentimental ist ihre Darstellung des g-Moll-Quartetts von Mozart ... In ganz andere Klangwelten führt der Quartettsatz Gustav Mahlers ... Die Musikerinnen überzeugen bei diesem frühen Mahler mit leidenschaftlich-packendem Spiel ... Höhepunkt der CD ist sicher das g-Moll-Quartett von Johannes Brahms. Vor allem hier erwiesen sich die vier Damen als bestens aufeinander eingespieltes Team ... erweist sich als homogener Klangkörper, als Glücksfall für die Gattung, der sich sonst nur selten feste Ensembles annehmen".


BBC music magazine

2019 August

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Rebecca Franks

2019 August

"This may be a debut disc, but the Skride Piano Quartet show it already has bags of personality. The group finds a balance between generous sound, overall architecture and telling detail".


The gramophone

2018 Awards

By

By

David Threasher

2018 Awards

"The years of collaboration between these players (and the fact that the violinist is his [Barenboim's] son) show in the chamber interaction between them; Barenboim's default piano mode can be to play to the back of the hall at all times but here he reins in his playing with a naturalness borne of such a long involvement with the composer. For truly sensitive piano-playing, try the E flat Quartet's slow movement or the development of the opening Allegro".


The gramophone

2023 October

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Rob Cowan (f. 1948)

2023 October

"I found this coupling both fascinating and exasperating. Federico Colli is a pianist on a mission, and that mission is to visit every musical phrase with a maximum of tonal colour ... All this might be considered admirable, even stimulating, in Scarlatti sonatas ... I certainly enjoyed them, but in the two Mozart masterpieces featured here ... I frequently discern a clash of styles ... So, in a word, inconsistent".


The gramophone

2007 July

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By

Edward Greenfield

2007 July

"The Nash are right up there with the leaders in this dazzling Mozart coupling".


High fidelity (Kbh.)

Årg. 39, nr. 3 (2006)

By

By

Mogens Wenzel Andreasen

Årg. 39, nr. 3 (2006)


The gramophone

2019 June

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By

Richard Bratby

2019 June

"[The Brahms is] the work of a composer in his twenties, and it's to the credit of this multinational chamber supergroup that you never forget this ... If, at times, it can all feel a little breathless, I'd argue that the gains outweigh any losses ... Mozart's G minor Piano Quartet opens the disc, and this too is taut, energetic and unaffected ... So sit back, we're on the road to Brahmsian glory".


Information

d. 29. July 1999

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d. 29. July 1999