By David Vernier
In the interest of fair-minded
listening I did not read any notes to this recording or any press
materials: if a modern string quartet can't stand on its own and explain
itself with the strength and elegance of its musical argument (the way
Mozart's and Haydn's and Beethoven's works did), then no amount of
"explanation" can convince a listener of its worth either in time or
aesthetic value. And having listened to this recording three times very
carefully, I still have no idea what the note-writer said--but I can
unreservedly say that this is a first-rate program of eminently
listenable, exceptionally well-wrought chamber music, remarkable for its
inventive, conventionally sophisticated string quartet writing--no
resorting to gimmicks or lazy, non-musical extremes of timbre or
technique.
These days I tend to hold
my breath in the first few seconds of listening to a new-music
recording--it's astonishing what gag-inducing blather today's composers
regard as worthy of inflicting on their audiences. But, be not afraid:
Anders Koppel is not only an intelligent artist, he also knows how to
write really fine music for string quartet--and as a string player, I
mean he really knows string writing. The two quartets exemplify the
elevation of melody against a fundamentally but harmlessly dissonant
background--all the while exploiting the strings' unique timbral
character, and the result is exactly what a string quartet should
achieve: 15 or 20 minutes of bracing, engaging music that you couldn't
hear in any other context.
Best of
all--and the primary reason to purchase this disc--is the Quintet for
Mezzo Saxophone and String Quartet. Okay, while the "custom-built mezzo
saxophone", heard here "for the first time ever on CD", may be an
intriguing draw for some listeners, I have to say that to my ears its
sound is little different from an alto saxophone. Nevertheless, this
makes no difference regarding the work for which it appears here. The
Quintet is a luscious, sexy, richly characterful piece firmly rooted in
jazz idioms yet holding court in the most sophisticated arenas of
classical style. The saxophone is not just a gratuitous addition but
stands as an integral part of the work--Anders Koppel has created
something not only sensible but laudable and repeatable and demanding of
a place in the concert repertoire, an achievement already noted in our
review of his saxophone concertos. Make
this a priority.
Read the review on Classics Today's website: http://www.classicstoday.com/review.asp?ReviewNum=13359