Krzysztof Penderecki - Complete Music for String Quartet and String Trio (Tippett Quartet)

Information

Composer: Krzysztof Penderecki

1. String Quartet No. 1
2. String Quartet No. 2
3. Der unterbrochene Gedanke
4. String Trio: I. Allegro molto -
5. String Trio: II. Vivace
6. String Quartet No. 3 "Leaves from an Unwritten Diary"
7. String Quartet No. 4: I. Andante
8. String Quartet No. 4: II. Vivo

Tippett Quartet

    John Mills, violin

    Jeremy Isaac, violin

    Lydia Lowndes-Northcott, viola

    Bozidar Vukotic, cello

Date: 2021

Label: Naxos

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Review

Who, hearing Penderecki’s first two string quartets, could have predicted the trajectory that would lead to the Fourth, premiered roughly half a century later. The first two wear their 1960s avant-garde credentials with pride: No. 1 (1960) a cornucopia of buzzing, thrumming, thwacking extended instrumental techniques inhabiting the soundworld of a Berio; No. 2 (1968) a little indebted to Ligeti. Then came quartet silence until, two decades on, the brooding miniature Der unterbrochene Gedanke indicated a linguistic hiatus heralding a plunge into a less astringent world – a development compounded by the String Trio, and two further quartets content to engage with points of reference including gypsy and Eastern European folk music. Together they signalled a decisive journey away from the avant-gardism that Penderecki had come to see as an expressive dead end.

Presented chronologically as here, it’s a journey that makes for a rewarding listen. To discuss the two ‘extras’ first, the Trio sees the Tippetts offer a fastidiously calibrated delineation of its trenchantly purposeful dialogue, while in Der unterbrochene Gedanke they draw on a refulgent, questing radiance. They ricochet through the fizzing textures of the First Quartet like a violently discharged pinball, but don’t short-change its more confiding asides. The ebb and flow of the confessional Quartet No. 3, meanwhile, is navigated with an assurance that speaks to their inside-out assimilation of all six scores. To have such a comprehensive programme vividly recorded and performed with such distinction is a triumph; to have it on a single disc at budget price is an utter steal.

— Paul Riley

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Krzysztof Penderecki (23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer. After graduating from the Academy of Music in Kraków, he began teaching there and gained international recognition. His innovative compositions, characterized by experimental sonorities and distinctive orchestral techniques, include Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima, St. Luke Passion, Anaklasis, Utrenja and Polish Requiem. His output also include 5 operas, 8 symphonies, concertos, chamber works and numerous choral compositions. Penderecki received many prestigious honors, including 4 Grammy Awards.

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The Tippett Quartet have performed at Wigmore Hall, BBC Proms, Kings Place, Purcell Room, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Bridgewater Hall, and have toured Europe, Canada and Mexico. Their broad and diverse repertoire highlights the Tippett Quartet’s unique versatility. They have an impressive catalogue of recordings, most recently being awarded Gramophone Record of the Month for their recording of Gorécki Quartets for Naxos. They were Ensemble in Residence at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge University for 2012-13 and from 2015 they have been resident at Royal Holloway University, London.

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