The American String
Project is a group of fifteen string
players who play without conductor.
The leaflet states that the "Project"
is "an annual phenomenon where
diverse performers and modes and visions
mingle to create something that did
not exist before" and that "the
intimacy of the chamber music articulation
, with its interplay of tone and color,
is enriched and deepened, taking on
the tonalities of a string symphony
– but always with the proportion and
exchange that characterizes the great
chamber works".
I have quoted this
at length as it is certainly not the
impression given by the Beethoven Quartet
which opens the disc. There is nothing
new in small or even large orchestras
playing Beethoven’s Quartets, and recordings
by Toscanini and others have shown that
they can reveal new aspects of the music.
Unfortunately that is not the case here.
The main effect of doubling or trebling
the various lines is to muddy the texture
and make Beethoven’s careful sharing
of the material between the players
sound clumsy. The sound of the doubled
(trebled?) first violin is particularly
unpleasant sounding frequently out of
tune and harsh. This is a great pity
as the shape of the underlying performance
insofar as it can be discerned is serious
and idiomatic.
Things improve for
the other items. Other Shostakovich
Quartets have been turned into String
Symphonies and there is no reason why
the same cannot be done here. There
are indeed some gains from the extra
strings, although I am not convinced
that even then they outweigh the loss
of intimacy and greater transparency
in the original. The lengthy second
movement should gain in intensity with
each repeat of the various ostinato
figures which form its basic material
but somehow it fails to do so here.
The tension dissipates on occasion and
has to be regained afresh. I would certainly
not regard this as a complete failure
as a performance – the fundamental character
of the Quartet is conveyed - but overall
it does not begin to compare with the
best performances with one player to
a part.
The most successful
and enjoyable performances by a long
way are the three short pieces by Sarasate.
Essentially all are string solos with
accompaniment, and they work well when
transcribed entirely for strings. The
applause after the final item is well
deserved - and curiously is the only
applause on a disc said to be of a live
concert - but perhaps these pieces are
too late to save a disc whose ambitious
aims are not achieved in practice.
John Sheppard
