greggery peccary Posted December 19, 2015 Report Share Posted December 19, 2015 I am starting to dabble in modern classical music. I read that Carter's string quartets are among the best of bunch where modern quartets are concerned. As a fan of smaller group chamber music I am curious if this set will appeal to that interest of mine. I considered getting his complete string quartets, which are available a number of ways, but I am curious if this is a better place to start. Thanks for your input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T.D. Posted December 19, 2015 Report Share Posted December 19, 2015 (edited) I agree that "Carter's string quartets are among the best of bunch where modern quartets are concerned", but his music is a little thorny, difficult (and similar cliches), and not always immediately pleasing to newcomers to "modern classical". I've been down that road, and would start out with the Nonesuch Retrospective set. It's more diverse, and you get good performances of 2 of the 5 SQs (I happen to like the Composers Quartet), and various other excellent pieces (Night Fantasies for piano is a personal favorite). Downsides are that the Retrospective only includes works up to 1982, and the complete SQs are available somewhat cheaper. But you can fill in gaps later on if you become an enthusiast. Edited December 19, 2015 by T.D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted December 19, 2015 Report Share Posted December 19, 2015 The Arditti Quartet's readings of Quartets 1-4 come highly recommended. Maybe a little pricey, but worth it. Carter's on my "by on sight" list, and the used classical bins have returned good results at even better prices. Wasn't aware of this Nonesuch package until now, but have picked up some of the material on used LPs, so if there is this, then yes! Besides Nonesuch, there's also plenty of good Carter on Bridge & Naxos. I found him pretty easy to "follow" (not in every detail right away, but just getting a handle on what to look for going forth) once i realized just how rhythmic the music was. Granted, overlapping rhythms sometimes seeming at odds against themselves, but still, very rhythmic. Once that cloud lifted, everything else started falling into place. Still nowhere near grasping all of it, but it gets easier - and more fun - each time, there really is that much "there" there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffcrom Posted December 19, 2015 Report Share Posted December 19, 2015 I have the Nonesuch box, and think it would be a good place to start - good performances of a range of pieces covering a wide chronological period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted December 19, 2015 Report Share Posted December 19, 2015 1 hour ago, jeffcrom said: I have the Nonesuch box, and think it would be a good place to start - good performances of a range of pieces covering a wide chronological period. I have lots of Carter and agree the Nonesuch box is a great introduction and has enough strong performances it won't be discarded later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsMobley Posted December 20, 2015 Report Share Posted December 20, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spontooneous Posted December 21, 2015 Report Share Posted December 21, 2015 Wasn't aware of this box. Thanks! I'd shell out almost that much for the Paul Jacobs solo pieces alone. One caveat: The Nonesuch performance of the great Double Concerto has always seemed to lack drama. Hear the second Columbia recording if you can. (It's in the big Sony Charles Rosen box.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarThrower Posted December 21, 2015 Report Share Posted December 21, 2015 (edited) There are a lot of good modern string quartets. I have Carter's first two by the Composers Quartet on a single CD. These are in the Nonesuch box. I find them a bit baffling and hard to follow. I really like his wind quintet, but I don't know of any recordings. There's a great performance on YouTube by the Armani Quintet. I also like his piece Steep Steps for bass clarinet. You can find it on the Bridge label. They have a fine series of Carter recordings. But for string quartets, I like modern sounds and dissonance, but I want some lyricism as well. Quartets by Carter, Ferneyhough, and other ultra modernists can be tough going. Lutoslawski's is also pretty strange. Here's a short list of some 20th century quartets I enjoy. Hindemith Quartets by Kocian Quartet, and Amar Quartet Rihm Nos. 1-4 by Minguet Quartet on Col Legno Dutilleux's quartet on Erato Zemlinsky Nos. 3 & 4 by Artis Quartett Wellesz No. 3, 4, 6 by Artis Quartett Webern- String Works by Artis and Schoenberg Quartets Norgard nos. 7-10 by Kroger Quartet Penderecki's quartet on the Vox label. Bacewicz Quartets on Naxos these are superb, recorded in great sound by the Lutoslawski Quartet. Karl Hartmann Nos. 1-2 on Nimbus label Berg Lyric Suite by Emerson Quartet Edited December 21, 2015 by StarThrower Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsMobley Posted July 8, 2016 Report Share Posted July 8, 2016 Kalish Zukofsky EC Duo not in the box though the Double Concerto from the same album is Oppens Arditti good elsewhere Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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