<<  -- 3 --  Robert Anderson    RICH AND RARE SONORITIES

Sardà commences lyrically but has some close imitation and tense dialectic. There are passages of thoughtful eloquence for the different instruments, including something for that Catalan cellist mentioned above [listen -- track 3, 1:40-3:15]. The close part writing produces passages of aggressive harshness, but the instrumental exploration of the three composers have at least spared us the 'Bartok pizzicato' of his Fourth Quartet that seeks to combine music with the crack of a pistol.

The Kreutzer Quartet has an enviable reputation for sheer adventure. One feels the Devil himself could devise no technical conundrum to daunt these four players. They unite to complete assurance a sensitivity to musical textures that has made listening to this CD a pleasure beyond expectation. It is not for nothing they have recorded for this same label a couple of quartets by Roberto Gerhard, an exiled Spanish composer who could be seen thoughtfully pacing the streets of Cambridge (UK) during my time there. It can safely be said that his spirit too breathes through this music and these performances.

To listen to the aural illustrations in this review, you may need to download RealNetworks' realplayer 8.