Scelsi: Intégrale des quatuors à cordes

Scelsi: Intégrale des quatuors à cordes / Trio à cordes
Quatuor Molinari
ATMA Classique ACD 2 2849 (24bit/96kHz download)

Contents:

    Quatuor à cordes No. 1 (1944)
  1. Quasi lento - Agitato - Molto sostenuo ed intenso - Con esaltazione esasperata - Vivace - Andante mosso - Drammatico - Violento, Feroce
  2. Molto lento, quasi funebre - Pesante
  3. Scherzo
  4. Moderato - Deciso - Dolcissimo

    5. Trio à cordes (1958)
  5. I
  6. II
  7. III
  8. IV
    Quatuor à cordes No. 2 (1961)
  1. I
  2. II
  3. III
  4. IV
  5. V

    6. Quatuor à cordes No. 3 (1963)
  6. Avec une grande tendresse (dolcissimo)
  7. L'appel de l'esprit, dualisme, ambivalence, conflit (drammatico)
  8. L'âme se réveille... (con transparenza)
  9. ... et tombe de nouveau dans le pathos, mais maintenant avec un pressentiment de la libération (con tristezza)
  10. Libération, catharsis
  11. Quatuor à cordes No. 4 (1964)
  12. Quatuor à cordes No. 5 (1984)

Performers: Olga Ranzenhofer (first violin), Antoine Bareil (second violin), Frédéric Lambert (viola), Pierre-Alain Bouvrette (cello)

Playing time: 48' + 54' = 102'

Recording date: June 2021 (Québec); released: 2024

This has been a quite welcome release, basically updating the classic set from the Arditti Quartet — although minus the vocal cycle Khoom. I've consequently updated my survey from 2021 to reflect this set, as it presents a series of worthwhile new interpretations:

String Quartet No. 1 does seem to lack some emotional resonance here, even as the playing is articulate, while the Trio for strings is relatively flat (on both of these survey programs). However, the middle three quartets are given very fine readings, certainly competing with existing options, perhaps surpassing them. (That these are high-def recordings — & I'm not actually certain that they are appearing on physical CD... — is also a worthwhile development, rendering the harmonic resonances & ornaments that much more vivid.) And then the String Quartet No. 5 (dated 1984 in these notes) was recorded for only the second time here (as far as I know...), i.e. after being basically transcribed (from Aïtsi for prepared piano) for the Arditti Quartet for their landmark project....

To purchasing information for this disc.

To Scelsi introduction.

T. M. McComb