This is technically flawless playing, and discipline and rigour also shape the interpretations. The plangent harmonies are kept firmly in order…The fine-boned vibrato is disciplined, occasional to the point of parsimony, evoking the orderly world of Haydn rather than late Romantic pathos…For this group, less is indeed more.

[Quartet] The Hagen players offer a colorful sonority, full and rich but also clear and detailed, and a balance that gives due prominence to the lower instruments, so that the polyphony of the music is well served. Intonation and ensemble are excellent...this release contains excellent and distinctive performances of two of Brahms’s great chamber works, recorded in very good sound, and deserves a strong recommendation.