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I have several sets for Beethoven, Bartok and Shostakovich quartets. A few LPs by Dvorak, Webern, Berg and Schoenberg. Other than that, I am wide open to suggestions primarily from late 19th century and 20th century composers.
I am not a fan of composers prior to mid 19th century, although I do enjoy Schubert and Beethoven.
So, please post some suggestions for chamber music (on LP) that you like both the performance and the sonics.
Thanks, Pat
Follow Ups:
Someone mentioned the first Juilliard Bartok recordings. Those were mono. The famous ones, the ones I'm familiar with and recommend, are the 1963 stereo recordings.
Chamber music is a pretty broad category, so I'd have do some work to recall all my favorite recordings, but off the top of my head
Anything on the Crossroads label.
The Vox Haydn Quartet series (shared between the Fine Arts and Dekany Quartets).
Tchaikovksy, Piano Trio - Olivera/Pletnev/Rosen
Ives String Quartets - Concord String Quartet
Anything by the Stern/Istomin/Rose Trio.
The Quaretto Italiano and the Beaux Arts Trio are also good bets.
Bruckner's String Quintet, with the Vienna Philharmonic Quintet. I have a Decca Ace of Diamonds LP.
This is a good one.
Dave
Juilliard's FIRST recordings of the Bartok quartets. The Columbia 6-eyes tend to be more quiet than the old Blue labels. I've spent more money than I care to admit assembling whisper-quiet copies.
The Vox box set of Faure Chamber music, but the Holland pressings. US Vox sucks. Eymar & Co really get to the heart of the music, IMHO. I also enjoy the Quatuor Parrenin, on French EMI. (No UK, IIRC.)
I second the vote for the Rach Cello Sonata with Wild and Shapiro. Just as many great tunes as the 2nd Piano Concerto. I used to corner cello players in College and make them play the 3rd mov't with me. Someday I'm going to transcribe it for piano alone.
Since you like sound quality: the Robles quartet on Argo playing Debussy, Ravel and Bax is stunning. The Bax trio is especially transporting.
Finally, there's a trio of Vaughan Williams' chamber music on EMI. I'd go first for the Phantasy Quartet Lp, including the 6 Studies in English Folk Song--#4 gets me every time--and the Violin Sonata, which isn't bad. The other two lp's in include his vocal works, some of which include instrumentalists as well. There's one song, "There is a Wind that Doth Blow" for piano, tenor and violin, that is particularly moving. All very well recorded.
I'm a big fan of Franz Schreker, and his Chamber Symphony is a pretty colorful, incredibly orchestrated work. It's only on digital as far as I know: Koch and Nonesuch.
Well, that's a start!
Excellent suggestions, I'll look for some of those too. We've discussed the Juilliard's Bartok quartets in the past, and I have to hand it to you, you are very perceptive about how the different cellists (Arthur Winograd in the first and Claus Adam in the second) make a profound difference in the two versions.
However, when it comes to sound quality, the first set are very early LPs and sound absolutely dreadful. No wonder you spent so much to get the best possible copies. The second set has good sound quality for the time (1964), and the LPs are reasonably cheap and easy to find in decent condition. My set is clean NM. And it is also a great performance despite your perceptive and accurate observations. If you are sending the OP on a search for a quiet, clean first set, you are giving him a lot of work to do. ;-)
Me? I'm still looking for a quiet copy of quartet 1 and 2. I've irked a lot of sellers who feel that NM = black and vaguely round from a distance. : )
Do you have the Beethoven quartets by the Quartetto Italiano on Philips? If not, seek them out and try to get the ones pressed in Holland.
Others:
Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms piano trios by the Haydn Trio Wien on Telefunken/Teldec discs.
Brahms piano trios by Trio Fontenay on Teldec. Hard to find (HTF).
Brahms clarinet quintet by Eddie Daniels et. al. on Reference Recordings. HTF.
Schubert Octet by the ASMF on Shandies
Schubert quartet no. 14 (Der Tod und das Mädchen) by the Quartetto Italiano on Philips (made in Holland).
Schubert string quintet by Alban Berg quartet and H. Schiff on EMI/Angel.
Shostakovich's quartets by the Fitzwillam quartet on the L'Oiseau Lyre label.
Ravel piano trio, Debussy violin/cello sonatas by the Borodin trio on Chandos.
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Two other I'd like to recommend even though they don't fit your criteria:
Bach violin sonatas/partitas by Arthur Grumiaux on Philips (Holland pressing!)
Bach Goldberg variations transcribed for violin, viola, cello; Sitkovetsky et. al. on the Orfeo label.
Unless I overlooked something, references to Dvorak are rare or absent. He wrote an abundance of excellent and very accessible chamber music. I have a London LP (CS 6357) of the Piano Quintet in A with Curzon and Willi Boskovsky that I have enjoyed for about 50 years. I find his quartets particularly fine, as well as a String Quintet in E-Flat.
The reference to Schubert's Octet with ASMF -- also a favorite -- brings to mind the jacket on my LP, an informal photo of Iona Brown with the other musicians. It is simply too tempting to refer to it as "Snow White and the Seven Fairies". Well played, though, for all that. A good group.
Yes. His quartets from no. 12 up and his piano trios I have and love. An oversight.
Borodin's chamber music is definitely worth seeking out. His String Quartet and piano quintet are gems.
Franck's Piano Quintet is a very fine work. I like the LP by Pennario, Primrose, Piatigorsky, and Heifetz.
Tchaikovsky's Sextet "Souvenir de Florence" is a classic. The recording by the Borodin String Quartet with Rostropovich is good, but there is a recording by the Guarneri Quartet that is also recommendable.
Rachmaninoff's Cello Sonata is a splendid work. The LP by Shapiro and Wild is very good. It's coupled with Kodaly's cello sonata.
The Chopin cello sonata is also excellent. The recording by Rostropovich with Argerich is very good.
Taneyev's Piano Quartet and Piano Trio are both exceptionally fine. (Russia's chamber music festival/competition is named for him.)
Off the beaten path, American composer Arthur Foote wrote some very good chamber music. I especially like his piano trios and his String Quartet. The LPs by the Williams Trio is good.
Piston's Quartets are interesting. Look for LPs by the Portland Quartet.
Gilels, Kogan, and Rostropovich made a fine recording of Saint-Saens' Piano Trio.
Arensky's Trio, recorded by Littauer, Terebesi, and Michel is good, if you run across it.
Well, that's kind of overkill, and I could think of a lot more if I tried. But if you want a different view, you might want to post this over on the Vinyl Asylum forum.
"Life without music is a mistake" (Nietzsche)
Excellent! Thank you
String quartets other than Beethoven, Bartok and Shostakovich:
Haydn (try op. 76 and 77, especially op, 76 no. 4, the "Sunrise");
Mozart (especially the six quartets dedicated to Haydn)
Schubert (especially nos. 13, 14 and 15);
Mendelssohn (all)
Brahms (all)
Wolf Italian Serenade
Smetana
Borodin
Debussy
Ravel
Schoenberg (especially no. 3)
Carter (especially no. 2)
I could post a lot more, but I needs to get goin' now.
Piano trios by Beethoven, Brahms, Faure, Debussy and Ravel; Piano Quintets by Schumann, Brahms and Franck; String quintets by Mozart and Brahms; String sextets by Mendelssohn and Brahms; Woodwind quintets by Reicha, Hindemith, Ibert and Neilsen; Clarinet quintets by Mozart and Brahms; Sextet for piano and winds by Poulenc; Beethoven septet; Mendelssohn and Schubert octets.
A bit more adventurous: trios by Reger; string quartets by Ives; trio and string quartets by Roussel and string quartets by Zemlinsky.
All of this can easily be found on LP. I like Philips LPs, so I look for the Grumiaux and Beaux Arts Trios, Quartetto Italiano, Netherlands Wind Ensemble, etc. I also like the Boston Symphony Chamber players, on RCA or DG. The Juilliard and Budapest string quartets were not always recorded in the best sound, but it's worth putting up with that for them.
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