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String Quartets by Beamish and Beethoven

Composers
Genres
Orchestras / Ensembles
Periods
Label
Catalogue numberBIS-1511 CD
Release date2005-12-29
Discs1
Orig. sample rate44100Hz
Total time53:42

BBC Music Magazine: outstanding; Gramophone: outstanding; Music Web International: outstanding; Classics Today: outstanding.

As a viola player and dedicated chamber musician, Sally Beamish has had ample opportunity to acquaint herself with the string quartet genre. The Beethoven C minor Quartet on this disc she first played when she was 14. Thirty years later, when commissioned by the Brodsky Quartet to write a work inspired by Beethoven's Op. 18, this is the one that caught her imagination. The result is String Quartet No.2, composed immediately after a visit to California in 2000. Inspired by two bridges – Golden Gate in San Francisco and a Californian rock formation called Natural Bridges – Beamish uses themes and bridging passages from the first movement of Beethoven's quartet for her four-movement work. Themselves forming a bridge across 200 years, these two works are preceded by Beamish's First String Quartet. Written as a meditation on the freedom of thought, it contains references to music from various cultures, including Ukrainian folk singing, a Turkish lament and African chants. Reviewers of previous BIS releases of Beamish's music have commented on the composer's 'striking and personal voice' and her 'poetic imagination and sensitivity to the world' – qualities that are no less audible on the present disc. The combination of classical and contemporary on this disc suits the Emperor String Quartet very well – in the 1995 Evian International String Quartet Competition the ensemble won not only the overall prize, but also the Mozart and Contemporary Music categories. For BIS they have previously recorded two discs, both of them highly acclaimed. The quartet's performance on BIS-CD-1269, featuring works by James MacMillan, was described as 'ultra-sensitive, and displaying a spectacular virtuosity and polish, while being remorselessly explosive' in the French music magazine Répertoire, and the German Fono Forum named them 'a true elite ensemble' on the strength of their disc of Martinu string quartets.

Some press voices:

"These are spacious, well focused recordings; and all three performances by the Emperor Quartet - they play the Beethoven Op 18 No 4, too - have abundant character and technical aplomb." The Gramophone 02/2006
 
  • STUDIO QUALITY
    File formats included in STUDIO QUALITY
    • FLAC 24-bit Stereo
    • FLAC 16-bit Stereo
    • MP3 Stereo
  • CD QUALITY | MP3
    File formats included in CD QUALITY | MP3
    • FLAC 16-bit Stereo
    • MP3 Stereo
$ 10.95
 
Extra material for download
 
 
  Composer: Beamish, Sally
  String Quartet No.1 18:17
01 I. Andante 03:30 $ 0.74 USD
02 II. Allegro 03:45 $ 0.79 USD
03 III. Lento 05:21 $ 1.12 USD
04 IV. Allegro 05:41 $ 1.19 USD
 
 
  Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
  String Quartet in C minor, Op.18 No.4 23:15
05 I. Allegro ma non tanto 08:25 $ 1.77 USD
06 II. Andante scherzoso quasi allegretto 06:42 $ 1.41 USD
07 III. Menuetto 03:33 $ 0.75 USD
08 IV. Allegretto 04:35 $ 0.96 USD
 
 
  Composer: Beamish, Sally
  String Quartet No.2, Opus California 10:36
09 I. Boardwalk 02:05 $ 0.44 USD
10 II. Golden Gate 03:22 $ 0.71 USD
11 III. Dreams Before Lullabies 02:35 $ 0.54 USD
12 IV. Natural Bridges 02:34 $ 0.54 USD
 
  Album total 53:42
ComposerBeamish, Sally
Beethoven, Ludwig van
String quartetEmperor String Quartet

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