Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: The Ten Great String Quartets

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
Quatuors à cordes : K.387, K.421/417b, K.482/421b, K.458, K.464, K.465, K.499, K575, K.589, K.590 / The Chilingirian Quartet

REVIEW
What a bargain this CD box set is: five hours of music comprising the six quartets dedicated to Papa Haydn, the Hoffmeister quartet and the three extant Prussian quartets (six were projected but the Grim Reaper intervened). These recordings, first issued in 1980 and 1986, represent the best of analogue and digital sound: warm, spacious but still intimate without being too reverberant or close; simply ideal. The Chilingirians have long been one of the world's premier quartets. Their playing exudes all the concentration, homogeneity, virtuosity and joy one would hope to encounter in a performance of these masterworks. I am particularly struck by the beauty of the cello playing in the later quartets, an emphasis Mozart deliberately engineered to please the gifted amateur cello player King Friedrich Wilhelm, to whom the six were originally meant to be dedicated. There is little point in ploughing conscientiously through every one of the ten quartets here, itemising the felicities of the Chilingirians' playing of them, so I will content myself with having made a few comments about several of them and urging any waverers to acquire this lovely set. --Ralph Moore, MusicWeb-International.com

Disc 1
1: I. Allegro Vivace Assai
2: II. Menuetto: Allegretto
3: III. Andante Cantabile
4: IV. Molto Allegro
5: I. Allegro
6: II. Andante
7: III. Menuetto: Allegretto
8: IV. Allegretto Ma Non Troppo

Disc 2
1: I. Allegro Non Troppo
2: II. Andante Con Moto
3: III. Menuetto: Allegretto
4: IV. Allegro Vivace
5: I. Allegro Vivace Assai
6: II. Menuetto: Moderato
7: III. Adagio
8: IV. Allegro Assai

Disc 3
1: I. Allegro
2: II. Menuetto
3: III. Andante
4: IV. Allegro Non Troppo
5: I. Adagio - Allegro
6: II. Andante Cantabile
7: III. Menuetto: Allegretto
8: IV. Allegro Molto

Disc 4
1: I. Allegretto
2: II. Menuetto: Allegretto
3: III. Adagio
4: IV. Allegro
5: I. Allegretto
6: II. Andante
7: III. Menuetto: Allegretto
8: IV. Allegretto

Disc 5
1: I. Allegro
2: II. Larghetto
3: III. Menuetto: Moderato
4: IV. Allegro Assai
5: I. Allegro Moderato
6: II. Andante
7: III. Menuetto: Allegretto
8: IV. Allegro

Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Number of Discs: 5

UK Delivery:

• Free delivery on all orders of £10 or more.
• £1.49 delivery fee on orders below £10.
• UK orders are shipped via Royal Mail 2nd Class.

International Delivery:

• Flat rate delivery charges vary by country.

Dispatch and Delivery Times:

• All orders are shipped from our warehouse in Northampton, UK within 48 hours of receipt during working hours.
• UK mainland orders typically arrive within 3-5 working days via Royal Mail 2nd Class.
• International estimated delivery times:
• Europe & Channel Islands: 7 to 10 working days
• USA: 7 to 15 working days
• Rest of the World: 9 to 21 working days

View our full delivery infomation here.