This is the first of three albums from the Mitja Quartet containing the 18 string quartets of Donizetti.

In his instrumental works, as well as in his theatrical compositions, Donizetti aimed to melt various styles and languages, constantly experimenting an always new compositional event. "Sparing my imagination" and "using just a few ideas" (in his own words) meant, for Donizetti, to let the melody breathe. It is one of the most explicit indications of what we define 'classical style'.

The sylloge proposed in this album contains six quartets belonging to different years. Each of them has been composed on the basis of common formal characteristics, but each of them develops its own peculiarities too. The variety of musical choices, the different traditions, solutions and combinations in these quartets shows how Donizetti conceives the quartet form as a compositional workshop.