Mozart: Divertimento in F major, K138 (Salzburg Symphony No. 3)

The Ebène Quartet’s fourth Virgin Classics release brings works that lie close to the origins of string-quartet writing – Mozart’s so-called ‘Haydn Quartets’. “It’s such amazing music, so rich and filled with such subtlety; completely unpretentious, yet of such genius,” says the Ebène’s first violin, Pierre Colombet.

After their multi-award-winning Virgin Classics debut with a CD of Debussy, Ravel and Fauré, a programme of Brahms, and the pop-jazz collection ‘Fictions’, the members of the Ebène Quartet turn to works that lie close to the very origins of string-quartet writing – Mozart’s so-called ‘Haydn Quartets’.

Composed in 1785, the set of six quartets was dedicated by Mozart to his friend and mentor Haydn, the acknowledged ‘father’ of the string quartet. The most famous of the set is the quartet in C major, KV 465, the ‘Dissonance’. It opens with a mysterious introduction, with layered harmonies creating the dissonance that gives the quartet its distinctive nickname. It is coupled with the quartet in D minor, KV 421 (another of the ‘Haydn Quartets) and the Divertimento in F major KV 138, written when Mozart was a teenager.

Pierre Colombet, first violin of the Quatuor Ebène explains the ensemble’s approach to Mozart: “We felt that, after Fictions, it would be a good idea to choose something really very classical, essential quartet music which went back to the roots of the quartet. We made a Haydn disc for another label some time ago, and we felt we just had to do some Mozart now. Yes, we’ve been playing Mozart for a very long time, but over the past year or two, we’ve felt more and more of a need to do it – it’s such amazing music, so rich and filled with such subtlety; completely unpretentious, yet of such genius.

And as Mathieu Herzog, the quartet’ viola vividly confesses: “It’s hardly news that classical musicians consider Mozart one of the most difficult composers to interpret, to play, to realise … you have to invest yourself constantly in his music and it’s very powerful, very tough on your emotions. And you have a weight on you – more like a layer of concrete on your head – because you want to succeed in delivering a new vision of the composer … We’re following in the footsteps of people who have played his music so very, very well and we want to respect Mozart for what he is. The whole thing is as hard as dancing Swan Lake in Caterpillar boots, but it’s worth the effort.

Pierre Colombet explains the title of their new release : “It might seem a bit of a paradox to call a Mozart disc ‘Dissonances’, even though he did write a quartet which is known as the ‘Dissonance’, but beyond that it’s true that Mozart’s music has loads and loads of very complex harmonies, sounds which create friction with each other.

Ebène’s cello Raphaël Merlin on the quartet’s interaction “When we’re playing Beethoven, Bartók or our jazz or pop repertoire, we use our instruments in a way that’s more percussive, that is more about the pressure we apply. But with Mozart it’s a matter of finding a natural resonance in our instruments, of letting them express themselves … almost of letting them communicate with each other in order to find the right resonance for this music. There is a phenomenon of sympathy – when the wood of an instrument’s soundbox vibrates and causes a vibration in the wood of an instrument close by. It’s that harmony that must link our instruments and that we ourselves must feel. It’s a very, very sensitive matter.”

During the 18th century it was common for noblemen to employ numbers of musicians to entertain themselves and their guests, and to add dignity and colour to occasions of Church and State. Music was frequently written to form a pleasant background to dinners and parties. Serious or complex music would clearly have been inappropriate for gatherings of this kind; it was the task of the composer to amuse the guests without overstepping his function and distracting them from the more important business of eating, drinking and making merry.

In these circumstances much music was produced which deserved no more than to be talked through; but composers of the ability of Mozart and Haydn responded with light music of a higher quality. The titles Divertimento, Cassation, Serenade and Notturno all refer to pieces of this kind. Elements of the old dances – allemande, courante, sarabande and so on – had fallen from favour, but the minuet was used a good deal and the style gallant was much in evidence.

Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields’ recording of Mozart’s most popular serenade – the ubiquitous Eine kleine Nachtmusik – made for Argo in 1970 has never been out of the catalogue, but the other works on this compilation, equally compelling, magically performed, have not, as often, seen the light of day on CD. Such is the case with the brief issue in Decca’s ‘World Of…’ series of the extended Divertimento KV 334 and the haunting Notturno for four orchestras, deploying extraordinary echo effects. These are complemented on this anthology with the Serenata Notturna, the three early Divertimenti KV 136–138, and the little-known but breezy Concertone opening the collection.

Since 2003, world-class musicians have met annually in Kärnten, Austria, at the “TRIGONALE – Festival of Early Music.” This 2 CD set brings together the highlights of last year’s festival.

Recorded live, the performances range from music of the Middle Ages, including motets by Machaut, through the Renaissance and Baroque eras to interpretations of the music of Mozart and Haydn. The line up of artistes is first class and included the Hilliard Ensemble, La Fenice/Jean Tubéry, and il Giardino Armonico, all offering an impression of the festival’s lively atmosphere.