Prism I: Beethoven, Shostakovich, Bach

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These aren’t warm interpretations; they repel as readily as they attract. But they’re thought-provoking, and often startlingly beautiful. And anyway, perhaps one shouldn’t draw too close to the... — Gramophone Magazine, December 2018 More…

Release Date: 21st Sep 2018
Catalogue No: 4817267
Label: ECM
Series: New Series
Length: 78 minutes

Grammy Awards

61st Awards (2019)

Nominee - Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance

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Excerpt, Bach, J S: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 2

Work length2:02

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Danish String Quartet (string quartet), Frederik Øland (violin), Asbjørn Nørgaard (viola), Fredrik Schøyen Sjölin (cello), Rune Tonsgaard Sorensen (violin)
Recorded: 2016-11-18
Recording Venue: Reitstadel, Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz

Fugue in E-Flat Major, BWV 876

Track length2:02

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Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 15 In E Flat Minor, Op. 144

Work length37:29

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Danish String Quartet (string quartet), Frederik Øland (violin), Asbjørn Nørgaard (viola), Fredrik Schøyen Sjölin (cello), Rune Tonsgaard Sorensen (violin)
Recorded: 2016-11-18
Recording Venue: Reitstadel, Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz

1. Elegy. Adagio

Track length13:27

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2. Serenade. Adagio

Track length6:11

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3. Intermezzo. Adagio

Track length1:36

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4. Nocturne. Adagio

Track length4:23

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5. Funeral March. Adagio molto

Track length5:03

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6. Epilogue. Adagio

Track length6:49

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Beethoven: String Quartet No. 12 in E flat major, Op. 127

Work length38:38

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Danish String Quartet (string quartet), Frederik Øland (violin), Asbjørn Nørgaard (viola), Fredrik Schøyen Sjölin (cello), Rune Tonsgaard Sorensen (violin)
Recorded: 2016-11-18
Recording Venue: Reitstadel, Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz

1. Maestoso - Allegro

Track length6:45

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2. Adagio ma non troppo e molto cantabile

Track length16:23

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3. Scherzo. Vivace

Track length8:24

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4. Finale

Track length7:06

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About

For its third ECM release, the Danish String Quartet inaugurates a series of albums with the overarching title of Prism, in which the group will present one of Beethoven’s late string quartets in the context of a related fugue by J.S. Bach as well as a linked masterwork from the quartet literature.

With Prism 1, it is the first of Beethoven’s late quartets, his grand Op. 127 in E flat major, alongside Bach’s luminous fugue in the same key (arranged by Mozart) and Dmitri Shostakovich’s final string quartet, No. 15 in E flat minor, a haunted and haunting sequence of six adagios. The DSQ recorded the disc at the Reitstadel in Neumarkt, Germany, applying its lyricism and spirit of ensemble to the interconnected sound world of these three composers.

Hailed by the Washington Post as “one of the best quartets before the public today” and as simply “terrific” by The Guardian, the Danish String Quartet is now one of the world’s leading string quartets. In 2009, the DSQ took First Prize, plus four additional prizes, in the Eleventh London International String Quartet Competition. They also received the Carl Nielsen Prize, Denmark’s most important cultural award, in 2011. The group’s 2017 ECM album, Last Leaf, saw it explore the texturally rich, emotionally resonant world of Nordic folk music.

“There is probably no string quartet that I would rather hear play Beethoven at the moment than this foursome of three young Danes and their Norwegian cellist, who demonstrate unrivalled intensity, freedom in their playing and remarkable feel for the composer.” - David Allen, New York Times

Reviews

December 2018

These aren’t warm interpretations; they repel as readily as they attract. But they’re thought-provoking, and often startlingly beautiful. And anyway, perhaps one shouldn’t draw too close to the music.

Classical Music November 2018

Parts of the Shostakovich are so blanched they hardly live; close recording allows for the pain to come through. In contrast comes the raw, dynamic energy of Beethoven’s Op 127, whose more interior passages link directly to the Shostakovich.

Prism I: Beethoven, Shostakovich, Bach

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