# Arensky - String Quartet 2 op.35 (SQ Review)



## Merl (Jul 28, 2016)

Original (violin, viola, 2 cellos) 

Recommended

Kim / Harrell / Bailey / Schmidt / Johnson - very close but buoyant live recording
Lajtha Quartet - full, vibrant performance with a few occasional intonation issues. 
Rosenthal / Maurer / Rosen / Hoogeveen - a plainer, darker 1988 reading (on Vangard) but still enjoyable. 
Shinozaki / Ensemble Sakra - slower and darker than many others but sometimes underplayed, especially in the 2nd movement. 
Arienski Ensemble - rougher ensemble and recording but this sounds decidedly Russian and convincing. 
Gutman et al - interesting live recording that is more virtuosic but the ensemble playing sounds all the better for it. Finale is fun. 
Orion - broadly-paced but very convincing live performance from the Santa Fe Festival.

*Better*

*Quint et al* - maybe not as dark as others but the playing in the 1st and 2nd movements is deeply felt and mesmeric. 
*Raphael Ensemble* - a lovely, warm recording, beautifully played. The Raphael prove to be a very impressive guide.

*Top Picks*

*Nash Ensemble* - they may be slightly broader and more measured in places but their pacing is really impressive and the recording is lovely. The rest of this superb chamber disc (Borodin sextet and Glazunov Quintet) is similarly terrific. So good I bought it.

*Spectrum Concerts Berlin* - gloriously deep, rich, resonant recording, low on vibrato, with lots of warmth and presence. At first I had a slight preference for the Nash recording but subsequent listening put this one up there with it. Happy to live with both of these.

Alternative Standard Quartet Version (2 violins, viola, cello) 

At the outset I'll state that I much prefer the deeper, darker sound of the original format of Arensky's quartet. The two cellos add a deep warmth to first movement, in particular.

Recommended 
*Ying* - technically flawless but do the Yings delve deep enough into the music? Not a bad recording (the sound is lovely) but I'd like more (maybe it's just because I prefer the original 2 cello version so much).


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