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Mozart, String quartets Vol. 5
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Armida Quartett

Mozart, String quartets Vol. 5

Price: € 22.95
Format: CD
Label: CAvi
UPC: 4260085534968
Catnr: AVI 8553496
Release date: 10 June 2022
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Label
CAvi
UPC
4260085534968
Catalogue number
AVI 8553496
Release date
10 June 2022
Album
Artist(s)
Composer(s)
EN
DE

About the album

In search of lost free time

Boredom (in German: “long whiling”) is apparently what drove Wolfgang to compose one of his string quartets at the inn at Bolzano. And yes, he was doing well, as father Leopold assured Mozart’s mother in a letter dated 28 October 1772.

How can we even imagine what boredom must have felt like for a 16-year-old genius? Was he sitting lackadaisically at the table with his father, scribbling counterpoint on paper and casually inventing the genre of Classical string quartet in passing? Or was Wolfgang just solving musical-logical Sudokus, as we all tend to do in such cases?

At any rate, it would be too Romantic to imagine that Mozart was writing an emotional diary with these string quartets, a sort of journal intime of his Italian journey. Still, by observing his son’s state of “boredom,” Leopold was indeed noting that Wolfgang was involved in a personal moment of forced leisure. Sitting at the table in the inn, he was processing and digesting the myriad of cultural, social, and musical impressions he had gathered in his travels, creating music that he could soon try out with friends or colleagues, or that might be performed at an upcoming reception in high society.

Apparently it was not even worth mentioning that Leopold never managed to sell these string quartets to a publisher. Could Wolfgang have written this music on his own initiative and for its own sake, without the rigorous control he would otherwise have imposed on works intended for practical purposes? Strangely enough, the genesis of most of Mozart’s string quartets is associated with his travels.

The first authentic quartet and the first group of six were all written in Italy; the second set emerged in the context of a trip to Vienna; finally, the late, “Prussian” quartets are associated the last journey in Mozart’s life. In the midst of these, the six “Classical” quartets show the manner in which Mozart chose to position himself in Vienna – also in relation to Joseph Haydn, who, in Vienna and elsewhere, was regarded as the undisputed master of the string quartet genre.

If we remain open to this idea of “whiling away the hours,” we can perceive the result of Mozart’s boredom in the meter and rhythm proportions of the Italian quartets. The music tends to jump with incredible speed from one idea to the next.(from the Booklettext by Hansjörg Ewert…….)

Aus „langer Weile“ soll der Wolfgang im Gasthaus eines seiner Streichquartette komponiert haben und, ja, er befinde sich wohl. So schrieb Leopold Mozart am 28. Oktober 1772 aus Bozen an seine Frau. Wie kann man sich die Langeweile eines Genies vorstellen? Sitzt da ein 16jähriger mit seinem Vater lustlos am Tisch und kritzelt Kontrapunkte aufs Papier und erfindet nebenbei das klassische Streichquartett? Oder löst er einfach wie unsereiner musikalisch-logische Sudokus? Die Vorstellung, er schreibe mit den Quartetten ein Tagebuch, ein ‚Journal intime‘ seiner italienischen Reise, dürfte jedenfalls zu romantisch sein. Dennoch zeigt uns Leopold durchs Schlüsselloch der Langeweile einen sehr persönlichen Augenblick erzwungener Muße: Die vielfältigen kulturellen, gesellschaftlichen und musikalischen Eindrücke der Reise werden im Gasthaus verarbeitet; es entsteht eine Musik, die vielleicht beim nächsten musikalischen Treffen mit Freunden oder Kollegen ausprobiert, beim nächsten gesellschaftlichen Empfang vorgeführt werden kann. Wie es scheint, war es nicht einmal der Rede wert, dass es dem Vater nicht gelang, diese Quartette an den Verlag zu verkaufen. Eine Musik für sich selbst also, aus eigenem Antrieb und vielleicht gar ohne die übliche Selbstkontrolle von Werken, die für einen bestimmten Zweck konzipiert wurden? Merkwürdigerweise sind die meisten von Mozarts Streichquartetten in Zusammenhang mit einer Reise entstanden: sein erstes echtes Quartett sowie die erste Sechsergruppe entstanden in Italien, das zweite Set steht in Zusammenhang mit der Reise nach Wien, die späten, ‚preußischen‘ Quartette mit Mozarts letzter Reise. Die sechs ‚klassischen‘ Quartette markieren Mozarts Standortbestimmung in Wien und Joseph Haydn gegenüber, dem Großmeister des Streichquartetts ebendort.

Artist(s)

Armida Quartet

ARMIDA QUARTETT Martin Funda Violin Johanna Staemmler Violin Teresa Schwamm Viola Peter-Philipp Staemmler Cello A triumph, both technically and musically. BBC Music Magazine, March 2021 Winning the ARD International Competition in 2012 (also sweeping all other prizes including the audience prize) propelled the Armida Quartet on to the international concert platform. After concerts and radio recordings as BBC New Generation Artists (2014-16) and subsequently as ECHO Rising Stars (2016/17), the musicians have established themselves as regular guests in the best-known chamber music halls in Europe, Asia, and the USA. In addition to regular appearances at European festivals such as the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the Rheingau Musik Festival, the quartet has enjoyed great success at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Berlin Philharmonie, and London‘s Wigmore Hall, among others. Acclaimed for their musical unity, which is evident in...
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ARMIDA QUARTETT Martin Funda Violin Johanna Staemmler Violin Teresa Schwamm Viola Peter-Philipp Staemmler Cello A triumph, both technically and musically. BBC Music Magazine, March 2021 Winning the ARD International Competition in 2012 (also sweeping all other prizes including the audience prize) propelled the Armida Quartet on to the international concert platform. After concerts and radio recordings as BBC New Generation Artists (2014-16) and subsequently as ECHO Rising Stars (2016/17), the musicians have established themselves as regular guests in the best-known chamber music halls in Europe, Asia, and the USA.
In addition to regular appearances at European festivals such as the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the Rheingau Musik Festival, the quartet has enjoyed great success at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Berlin Philharmonie, and London‘s Wigmore Hall, among others.
Acclaimed for their musical unity, which is evident in their fine-tuned sound and timing as well as their shared breaths, the musicians also emphasise their commitment to quartet playing with their choice of ensemble name: Armida refers to an opera by the composer Joseph Haydn, who is considered the „father of the string quartet“. They studied with former members of the Artemis Quartet and with Rainer Schmidt (Hagen Quartet); they owe further important impulses to Reinhard Goebel, Alfred Brendel, Marek Janowski, and Tabea Zimmermann.
The Armida Quartet places a special focus on the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The recently released third album of the on-going complete recordings of his string quartets for CAvi Records was praised as „musically ravishing and sonically (...) exemplary“, and described as ground-breaking for Mozart interpretation in the 21st century (Klassik Heute 1/2021).
The ensemble pursues its passion for Mozart, among other things, in its own concert series Mozart Exploded, in which each of the composer‘s string quartets are combined with masterpieces of contemporary music and occasionally presented in experimental concert formats in Berlin.
The series has already been enthusiastically received in New York as well. In addition, the young musicians have cooperated with G. Henle Verlag, for whom they act as musical advisors for the new Urtext edition of the Mozart quartets, including their own fingerings and bowings made available for the associated Henle Library App. In doing so, the quartet is not only at the forefront of the latest technological developments, but also advocates for closer collaboration between performing artists and musicologists.
Whether in its curatorial functions or on stage, collaboration with other artists is a priority for the Armida Quartet. They have a special relationship with the Serbian composer Marko Nikodijevi´c, whose first and second String Quartets they premiered. In the meantime, however, musicians such as Thomas Hampson, Martin Fröst, Tabea Zimmermann, Jörg Widmann, Julian Steckel, Sabine Meyer, and Daniel Müller-Schott have also become regular partners. In addition, the ensemble gives master classes in Germany as well as abroad and is committed to social and educational institutions, including initiatives such as Rhapsody in School and Yehudi Menuhin Live Music Now.
Along with the three albums of Mozart string quartets already released, the quartet‘s discography also includes their debut CD with works by Béla Bartók, György Ligeti, and György Kurtág (CAvi), released in 2013, which was included in the German Record Prize‘s Best List. A recording with works by Beethoven and Shostakovich was also released by CAvi in 2016, followed in 2017 by Fuga Magna with works by Scarlatti, Bach, Goldberg, Mozart, and Beethoven.
The quartet has also participated in various compilations of contemporary works by Samy Moussa, Ursula Mamlok, Birke J. Bertelsmeier, and Milica Djordjevi´c, among others.

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Composer(s)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose actual name is Joannes Chrysotomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a composer, pianist, violinist and conductor from the classical period, born in Salzburg. Mozart was a child prodigy. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven, Mozart is considered to be one of the most influential composers of all of music's history. Within the classical tradition, he was able to develop new musical concepts which left an everlasting impression on all the composers that came after him. Together with Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven he is part of the First Viennese School.  At 17, Mozart was engaged as...
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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose actual name is Joannes Chrysotomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a composer, pianist, violinist and conductor from the classical period, born in Salzburg. Mozart was a child prodigy. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven, Mozart is considered to be one of the most influential composers of all of music's history. Within the classical tradition, he was able to develop new musical concepts which left an everlasting impression on all the composers that came after him. Together with Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven he is part of the First Viennese School. At 17, Mozart was engaged as a musician at the Salzburg court, but grew restless and traveled in search of a better position. From 1763 he traveled with his family through all of Europe for three years and from 1769 he traveled to Italy and France with his father Leopold after which he took residence in Paris. On July 3rd, 1778, his mother passed away and after a short stay in Munich with the Weber family, his father urged him to return to Salzburg, where he was once again hired by the Bishop. While visiting Vienna in 1781, he was dismissed from his Salzburg position. He chose to stay in the capital, where he achieved fame but little financial security. During his final years in Vienna, he composed many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas, and portions of the Requiem, which was largely unfinished at the time of his death.


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Disc #1
01.
String Quartet No. 11 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 171 (1773): I. Adagio - Allegro assai
05:03
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
02.
String Quartet No. 11 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 171 (1773): II. Menuetto
03:26
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
03.
String Quartet No. 11 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 171 (1773): III. Andante
03:22
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
04.
String Quartet No. 11 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 171 (1773): IV. Allegro assai
02:36
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
05.
String Quartet No. 13 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 173 (1773): I. Allegro ma molto moderato
04:54
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
06.
String Quartet No. 13 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 173 (1773): II. Andantegrazioso
02:54
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
07.
String Quartet No. 13 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 173 (1773): III. Menuetto
04:41
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
08.
String Quartet No. 13 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 173 (1773): IV. Allegro moderato
03:41
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
09.
String Quartet No. 15 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 421 (1783): I. Allegro moderato
07:54
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
10.
String Quartet No. 15 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 421 (1783): II. Andante
05:54
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
11.
String Quartet No. 15 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 421 (1783): III. Menuetto. Allegretto
04:17
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
12.
String Quartet No. 15 d-Moll / in D Minor, K. 421 (1783): IV. Allegro ma noon troppo – Più allegro
08:57
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet

Disc #2
01.
String Quartet No. 3 G-Dur / in G Major, K. 156 (1772): I. Presto
02:32
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
02.
String Quartet No. 3 G-Dur / in G Major, K. 156 (1772): II. Adagio
05:14
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
03.
String Quartet No. 3 G-Dur / in G Major, K. 156 (1772): III. Tempo di Menuetto
03:59
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
04.
String Quartet No. 5 F-Dur / in F Major, K. 158 (1772): I. Allegro
03:48
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
05.
String Quartet No. 5 F-Dur / in F Major, K. 158 (1772): II. Andanteun poco Allegretto
04:19
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
06.
String Quartet No. 5 F-Dur / in F Major, K. 158 (1772): III. Tempo di Menuetto
05:48
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
07.
String Quartet No. 10 C-Dur / in C Major, K. 170 (1773): I. Andante
04:32
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
08.
String Quartet No. 10 C-Dur / in C Major, K. 170 (1773): II. Menuetto - Trio
03:03
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
09.
String Quartet No. 10 C-Dur / in C Major, K. 170 (1773): III. Un poco Adagio
03:52
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
10.
String Quartet No. 10 C-Dur / in C Major, K. 170 (1773): VI. Rondeaux. Allegro
02:24
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
11.
String Quartet No. 16 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 424 (1783): I. Allegro non troppo
07:20
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
12.
String Quartet No. 16 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 424 (1783): II. Andante con moto
08:35
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
13.
String Quartet No. 16 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 424 (1783): III. Menuetto. Allegretto
07:24
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
14.
String Quartet No. 16 Es-Dur / in E flat Major, K. 424 (1783): VI. Allegro vivace
05:35
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) Armida Quartet
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