Mieczyslaw Weinberg (1919-1996) – String Quartet No. 5, opus 27 (1945)
Melody. Andante sostenuto, 2. Humoreske. Andantino, 3. Scherzo. Allegro molto, 4. Improvisation. Lento, 5. Serenade. Moderato con moto
Performers: Arcadia Quartet
CD: Chandos
Nikolaj Mjaskowski (1881-1950) – String Quartet No. 12, in G major, opus 77 (1947)
Andante. Allegro moderato, 2. Allegro fantastico, 3. Andante con espressione, 4. Allegro non troppo
Performers: Taneyev String Quartet
CD: Northern Flowers
Weinberg’s 1945 Fifth String Quartet, opus 27, is the first in which he seems genuinely angry, especially where you wouldn’t expect it, in the Humoresque and the Serenade. Here we hear anger with the molars together. Mjaskowski dedicated his Twelfth String Quartet, in G gr.t. opus 77, to his student Kabalevsky. The work begins surprisingly brooding and sombre but brightens immediately when the main movement kicks in. It is proper quartet music that deserves a stage with the Concertzender, too.
