Beethoven & Mozart: Smycov kvartety – 4 CD

This four-CD set brings together string quartets by Ludwig van Beethoven and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart performed by the Vlach Quartet: Josef Vlach and Vclav Sntil on violins, Josef Koousek on viola and Viktor Mouka on cello. It includes Beethovens String Quartets Nos. 16, Op. 18, No. 7 in F major, Op. 59 Razumovsky, and No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 131, together with Mozarts String Quartet No. 15 in D minor, K. 421. Founded in 1950, the quartet took its definitive line-up in 1954, won the competition in Lige in 1955, performed on stages around the world and made all these recordings. Alongside the Smetana Quartet, it formed one of Pragues two distinguished quartets, whose contrasting approaches created a rare and inspiring artistic polarity. Josef Vlach, a remarkable pupil of Vclav Talich, violinist and conductor, shaped the ensemble with both kindness and authority. Ivan Medek described his ability to sense immediately what was genuinely powerful and communicative in music, with intellectual work continually nourished by deep emotional inspiration. The Beethoven quartets were recorded over ten years, from 1960 to 1970, while the Mozart quartet, recorded in 1956 shortly after the Lige victory, is one of the ensembles earliest recordings. These timeless Beethoven recordings represent only part of the Vlach Quartets remarkable legacy, which also includes Czech quartet music by Dvok, Suk and Janek, as well as works by Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Debussy and Ravel. The Mozart quartet appears on CD for the first time, and the Beethoven works for the first time on Supraphon.