# Penderecki - String Quartet 3 'Leaves of an Unwritten Diary' (SQ review)



## Merl (Jul 28, 2016)

A fine live Wigmore recording from the Meccore Quartet... 






Lots of very recommendable performances of this quartet. In fact, the only recording I can't fully recommend is that by Apollon Musagete, which I found too broad and lacking enough urgency. All the rest here are well worth hearing.

Recommended

Molinari - warmly lyrical and emotional reading that perhaps could have done with a little more urgency.
Messages - a good all-round performance that is easily recommendable.
Antarja - strong, persuasive account that occasionally becomes a little hurried
DAFO - a decent effort that I can recommend but it needs a bit more for me.

*Highly recommended

Royal String Quartet* - beautifully engineered and recorded but I didn't feel the visceral tension or excitement that the Tippett Quartet bring to this fine quartet even though they portray the tension and nostalgic qualities superbly. This has grown on me though, as I wasn't sure on first listen.
*Penderecki Quartet *- lovely recording with depth and the final few minutes is very engaging.
*Ãtma* - slower but beautifully realised and recorded account. A very impressive recording for a novice ensemble.
*Silesian* - brilliant playing and the Silesians convey the character of the music superbly. Like the others in this section, a hair's breadth off the top.

*Top pick

Tippett* - this full, reverberant, brisk brighter, rougher reading works the best for me. The ostinato is conveyed more tellingly in my ears and the urgency and forward drive are so powerful that I find this recording unbeatable even by the other high calibre accounts available.


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