# Zemlinsky - String Quartet 4 op. 25 (SQ review)



## Merl (Jul 28, 2016)

Listening to nearly all the available recordings of this quartet has been illuminating. As there were so few recordings I've placed all of them in a current order of preference. None are bad but the top 5 or 6 are very reommendable and stand head and shoulders above the bottom two. for me, interpretively. You may feel differently.






1. *LaSalle*
The oldest recording of the lot feels steelier and more fluid than the others here. The LaSalles really dig in so that moments such as the introduction of the Burleske sound menacing and abrupt (does anyone else think of 'Jaws' as the music comes in - another John Williams steal? ) and the intermezzo warmly melancholic and.lyrical in a way that older ensembles seem to have a monopoly on.
2.*Brodsky* - darker and more intense but with a bite (especially in the Burleske) that is irrestible.
3.*Artis* - a fine all-rounder. Seems to tick all the boxes. Lovely sound too.
4.*Schoenberg* - as a cohesive whole, the Schoenberg's are difficult to beat also. This is a fine account and one that some will prefer for the Schoenberg's clarity and phrasing. .
5.*Escher* - as above. Another easily recommendable and clear-minded account. Nothing between this and anything above it.
6.*Corda* - grittier, more robust approach but similarly winning.
7.Prazak
8.Lark

Unfortunately, I've been unable to track down a copy of the Zemlinsky quartet 's recording but if I do discover it I'll drop it into the list later.


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