Kodály Quartet

'Featuring two of Hungary’s finest quartets, this performance [of the Mendelssohn] captures all the youthful fervour of the opening Allegro moderato, the brilliant delicacy of the Scherzo and the driving perpetual motion of the Finale, while also finding an air of mystery and unexpected darkness in the slow movement.' Erik Levi - BBC Music Magazine

“Featuring two of Hungary's finest quartets, this performance captures all the youthful fervour of the opening Allegro moderato, the brilliant delicacy of the Scherzo and the driving perpetual motion of the Finale, whilst also finding an air of mystery and unexpected darkness in the slow movement.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2006 *****

“fully worthy of the composer’s inexhaustible invention” Penguin Guide (on the Kodály Quartet)

“...typically honest, unadorned renderings.” Gramophone Magazine

“The Kodaly's Quartet's exploration of Haydn's 80-plus string quartets has given constant delight over recent years. Three of the Op.17 Quartets from 1771 now complete this budget odyssey, and it's fitting to honour the Kodaly's impressive achievement as among the best CDs of 1999. A worthy climax to a series that's already set new standards for modern-instrument Haydn quartet interpretation on CD.” BBC Music Magazine

“The so-called Lark (No 5), with its soaring opening melody and moto perpetuo finale, is perhaps the most immediately fetching of all Haydn's quartets. But No 6 is at least as fine, with its intimate and intensely argued opening movement, its poignant, exquisitely textured Andante and a finale full of instrumental fooling and insouciant contrapuntal virtuosity. Of the other works, No 2 is one of Haydn's most astringent pieces, from its tonally deceptive opening to the mordant, unsettling humour of the finale. Quartets Nos 3 and 4 return to a more familiar vein of sociable wit. Both are endlessly subtle and surprising in their arguments, with cantabile slow movements of peculiar candour and eloquence.
Quartet No 1, the least favoured of the six is certainly the plainest in its thematic ideas. But it's an absorbing, immensely sophisticated piece, exploring an astonishing range of textures; the recapitulation of the leisurely first movement opens up marvellous new harmonic vistas, while the central development of the finale is a canonic tour de force. The Kodály Quartet has rightly won plaudits for its wonderfully civilised playing; mellow and lyrical, far removed from the highly strung brilliance cultivated by many modern quartets. Ensemble and intonation are first class, tempos generally spacious, with broad, natural and beautifully matched phrasing.
It's at its very finest where Haydn is at his most searching; and the Quartets Nos 2, 5 and 6 each receive outstanding, deeply considered performances. In one or two movements the Kodály's penchant for slowish tempos leads to a slight dourness. Against that, it brings a deliciously lazy Ländler lilt, enhanced by the first violin's portamentos, to the Trio of No 6, and a grave, inward intensity to each of Haydn's slow movements. The recording, made in a Budapest church, is resonant and less intimate than is ideal in this music.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“This group's versions of the Haydn quartets are among the glories of the Naxos label.” Irish Evening Press

“The so-called Lark (No 5), with its soaring opening melody and moto perpetuo finale, is perhaps the most immediately fetching of all Haydn's quartets. But No 6 is at least as fine, with its intimate and intensely argued opening movement, its poignant, exquisitely textured Andante and a finale full of instrumental fooling and insouciant contrapuntal virtuosity. Of the other works, No 2 is one of Haydn's most astringent pieces, from its tonally deceptive opening to the mordant, unsettling humour of the finale. Quartets Nos 3 and 4 return to a more familiar vein of sociable wit. Both are endlessly subtle and surprising in their arguments, with cantabile slow movements of peculiar candour and eloquence.
Quartet No 1, the least favoured of the six is certainly the plainest in its thematic ideas. But it's an absorbing, immensely sophisticated piece, exploring an astonishing range of textures; the recapitulation of the leisurely first movement opens up marvellous new harmonic vistas, while the central development of the finale is a canonic tour de force. The Kodály Quartet has rightly won plaudits for its wonderfully civilised playing; mellow and lyrical, far removed from the highly strung brilliance cultivated by many modern quartets. Ensemble and intonation are first class, tempos generally spacious, with broad, natural and beautifully matched phrasing.
It's at its very finest where Haydn is at his most searching; and the Quartets Nos 2, 5 and 6 each receive outstanding, deeply considered performances. In one or two movements the Kodály's penchant for slowish tempos leads to a slight dourness. Against that, it brings a deliciously lazy Ländler lilt, enhanced by the first violin's portamentos, to the Trio of No 6, and a grave, inward intensity to each of Haydn's slow movements. The recording, made in a Budapest church, is resonant and less intimate than is ideal in this music.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“The Kodaly's fine reading.” Classic CD