Composer: Alfred Francis Hill
Performer: Dominion String Quartet, Richard Greager, Richard Mapp, Bryony Williams, Amelia Berry, Linden Loader, Annabelle Cheetham, Chris Berentson, Daniel O’Connor, Keith Small, Mark Dorrell
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Naxos
Catalogue: 8572844
Release: 2011
Size: 364 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
String Quartet No. 10 in E major
01. I. Allegro
02. II. Adagio
03. III. Scherzo
04. IV. Finale: Allegro moderato
String Quartet No. 11 in D minor
05. I. Andantino – Lento – Allegro
06. II. Adagio
07. III. Allegretto
Life Quintet
08. I. Grave – Allegro
09. II. Marche funebre
10. III. Scherzo
11. IV. Finale, “Gloria in excelsis Deo”: Adagio maestoso – Allegro maestoso (version for voices and piano quintet)
Alfred Hill was the doyen of Australasian composers, and his exploration of the string quartet demonstrates the range of his imagination. Both the Tenth and Eleventh quartets were written in 1935, but they offer richly differing affiliations. No. 10 brings a classical formality fused with hints of Gershwin, and a remarkable last movement which recalls the three earlier movements in rapid succession in just 32 bars, whereas No. 11 marks the height of Hill’s impressionist refinement, complete with a characteristically beautiful slow movement. The ‘Life’ Quintet, with its vocal finale, was written in 1912, a fascinating experiment later reworked into a symphony.