Composer: Louis Spohr
Performer: Moscow Philharmonic Concertino String Quartet
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Marco Polo
Catalogue: 8225982
Release: 2011
Size: 313 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
String Quartet No. 31 in A major, Op. 132
01. I. Allegro vivace
02 .II. Adagio
03. III. Scherzo. Vivace
04. IV. Finale. Allegro molto
String Quartet No. 36 in G minor, Op. 157
05. I. Allegro
06. II. Larghetto
07. III. Menuetto
08. IV. Finale. Allegro molto
09. Potpourri No. 4 in B major, Op. 24
This is the 14th volume in Marco Polo’s ongoing survey of the string quartets of Spohr, one of the greatest violinists of his day.
Louis Spohr composed string quartets throughout his career, the String Quartet No. 36 being his last completed large-scale work, composed in 1857 and modelled on those of Haydn and Mozart. As a result of depression during his later years, Spohr embargoed its performance, but as this recording shows it is a work of consummate craftsmanship. His String Quartet No. 31 was composed eleven years earlier and found favour with Mendelssohn and Wagner for its tightly woven counterpoint and sophisticated character. The earliest piece here, the Potpourri No. 4, is a short virtuoso display piece that draws on favourite opera arias by his idol Mozart.