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Delius & Elgar: String Quartets

Villiers Quartet

Awards:

Ripely captured by the microphones, the Villiers Quartet are on dedicated form and their reading of the work as we know it today is likewise a laudable one…for Delius diehards the disc will...

Delius & Elgar: String Quartets

Villiers Quartet

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44.1 kHz, 16 bit, FLAC/ALAC/WAV

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This release includes a digital booklet

Stream now Hi-RES 96 kHz, 24 bit

Awards:

Ripely captured by the microphones, the Villiers Quartet are on dedicated form and their reading of the work as we know it today is likewise a laudable one…for Delius diehards the disc will...

About

The legacy of the First World War left its mark on the music of near contemporaries Edward Elgar and Frederick Delius. The powerful outer movements of Elgar’s String Quartet in E minor frame a wistful and sombre Andante piacevole. Delius was dissatisfied with the first, three-movement version of his Quartet and revised the score. On this recording the final 1917 version is followed by the original versions of the opening movement and of the Late Swallows slow movement, offering a rare glimpse into Delius’s compositional workshop.

Contents and tracklist

I. With Animation
Track length7:30
II. Quick & Lightly
Track length4:02
III. Late Swallows [Slow & Wistfully]
Track length9:32
IV. Very Quick & Vigorously
Track length6:16
I. Allegro moderato [With Animation]
Track length7:30
II. Late Swallows [With Slow Waving Movement]
Track length8:43
I. Allegro moderato
Track length8:57
II. Piacevole (Poco andante)
Track length9:27
III. Allegro molto
Track length9:19

Spotlight on this release

Awards and reviews

  • Presto Editor's Choice
    May 2017

July 2017

Ripely captured by the microphones, the Villiers Quartet are on dedicated form and their reading of the work as we know it today is likewise a laudable one…for Delius diehards the disc will be essential listening for the two extra completions alone.

July 2017

The addition of the two first versions of the Delius Quartet make this uniquely valuable.

May 2017

Warm, open-hearted performances from the six-year-old British string quartet, who take the considerable technical demands of the Elgar entirely in their stride and make a hugely persuasive case for the neglected Delius quartet, with sound that's as glowing and golden as the record-sleeve.

30th April 2017

The Villiers Quartet, formed in 2011 and specialists in English music (among other things; they are an inquisitive ensemble), play the Delius with zest and passion. Their Elgar, too, is febrile and bold. Fresh playing all round, at budget price.

July 2017

The Villiers balances expressive intensity with a chamber- scale introspection that draws the listener in, enhanced by a discreetly atmospheric yet detailed sound picture.

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