BBT Audio
Dudok Quartet Amsterdam BBT Award 2018
Reflections
(Shostakovich, Bacewicz)
Rubicon Classics RCD1099 Release 25 November 2022
“The music we play is never old or new, but always relevant and present.”
Having focused on single composers for its last two sets of albums (Haydn and Brahms), Dudok Quartet Amsterdam returns to the format of thought-provoking pairings and collections of repertoire that established its early reputation. Its second recording for Rubicon features Shostakovich String Quartet No 5 Op 92 and Bacewicz String Quartet No 4, linked by the Quartet’s own arrangement of a selection of Shostakovich’s Preludes Op 34, originally written for piano. These composers lived and worked in a time and social environment of repression and control but, although both these quartets were written in 1951, they display contrasting moods. Shostakovich demands intense physical, emotional and intellectual stamina from the players, while the Bacewicz offers an abundance of virtuosic fun and rhythmic exuberance, reflecting her original and independent spirit.
