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St. Lawrence String Quartet
TCHAIKOVSKY: STRING QUARTETS 1 AND 3
(EMI)

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Until recently, Tchaikovsky’s quartets seemed to be victims of an informal blacklist; one critic has said that they prove "conclusively that Tchaikovsky was a much more assured and persuasive creator in the orchestral realm." That may be true, but the quartets nevertheless remain vastly underrated works, showing off the young composer’s rhythmic freedom, contrapuntal skill, and inventive use of dissonance. For years they’ve been the purview of (who else?) Russian quartets, such as the Borodin, getting little or no playing time on today’s concert circuit.

Perhaps that will change with this release. The St. Lawrence, a young Canadian quartet, make a fantastic case for the First and Third Quartets. Their tone is warm yet tightly focused, rendering transparent the inner detail of Tchaikovsky’s occasionally murky writing. They’re faithful but not slavish to the written score, unafraid to add a portamento or ritard to underscore an important musical event. Their reading of the First Quartet is well paced and organized, their playing lyrical and graceful. The famous Andante cantabile is bittersweet but not overly sentimental.

But it’s the Third that’s the real revelation. They make the architecture of the sprawling first movement clear, and they give a dynamic, spirited account of the scherzo. The third movement — a gray, desolate funeral march — sounds almost like early Shostakovich, so poignant and private is the expression of grief. The finale sounds like an exuberant, vodka-soaked party, better than the ones you usually end up at.

Given performances of this quality in excellent sound, there’s no reason not to (re)acquaint yourself with these works immediately. And keep a sharp eye on the St. Lawrence. This is their second recording for EMI (their first was of similarly neglected quartets by Schumann), and I hope that they and their diverse repertoire will soon become a significant part of the musical landscape.

BY DAVID WEININGER

Issue Date: January 17 - 24, 2002
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