After completing his
ten Strathclyde Concertos, all recorded
either by Unicorn or by Collins Classics
(both deleted and surely in line for
reissue) as well as his eight symphonies,
Maxwell Davies embarked on a new series
of ten string quartets. These were commissioned
by Naxos, to be performed and recorded
by the Maggini Quartet. At the time
of writing, the half of this rather
unusual work in progress has been completed.
No mean undertaking, anyway, that –
when completed – might well compare
to Shostakovich’s, Holmboe’s or Simpson’s
output for the medium. In the insert
notes, PMD boldly admits that "it
was the architectural challenges which
preoccupied [me]". He goes on to
say that this "enabled [me] to
think from the outset of an architecture
spanning the whole cycle... [I] feel
like a novelist..." (Sorry for
these long quotes!) It is thus quite
clear that there will be much interrelated
material shared by the ten Naxos
Quartets; and this means, too,
that a proper assessment will only be
possible after the completion of the
cycle. In short, the task will be much
harder when dealing with such a long-term
undertaking than when assessing each
of the string quartets composed by Bartók,
Frankel, Shostakovich or Simpson, for
each of their quartets was conceived
as a self-standing piece of music rather
than as "a chapter from a novel".
It will need some experienced and dedicated
analyst to see clearly through such
intricately worked-out material. So,
what are we to do with what is only
parts of a much larger and more ambitious
scheme? I think that the most suitable
reaction at present is to consider each
Naxos Quartet as a single
piece of music, leaving the global analysis
of the cycle to some real master analyst
(which I am not, I hasten to say).
The Naxos Quartet
No.1 is in three movements playing
for about thirty minutes. The movements’
layout, however, is rather unusual:
two fairly long movements capped by
a miniature finale. The first movement
opens with a slow, hushed introduction
leading into the Allegro section in
which the basic material is intricately
worked-out. The second movement, predominantly
slow, "starts out as a passacaglia
that at times branches out towards different
directions before the music eventually
settles down as "participants have
come to an agreement". The final
Scherzo (playing for a mere 2 minutes)
suggested by a strong breeze through
dry heather, fizzes briefly and quietly
until the music evaporates into thin
air without any real sense of finality.
"This scherzo will be brought back
from the stratosphere... in the Third
Quartet". So, we will have to wait
to see what comes out of it.
The Naxos Quartet
No.2, the longest so far, lays
for some forty minutes, and is on the
whole more traditionally structured
than its predecessor, although its four-movement
layout somewhat differs from the traditional
pattern. The opening movement is much
comparable to that of the First Quartet,
i.e. a slow introduction leading into
an Allegro section. The middle movements
(a slow movement and a Scherzo) are
clearly related and separated by a brief
pause. The concluding Lento is another
substantial piece of music that – again
– leaves many questions unanswered.
So, in short, judging
by what we hear here and by what we
know of the completed quartets (five
so far), the Naxos Quartets
will be a considerable achievement by
any count, although some of the forthcoming
"chapters" are to be somewhat
shorter,. The two works here are substantial
pieces of music, structurally complex,
which does not mean that the music itself
is intractable, i.e. from the listener’s
point of view. These, however, are complex
scores that need and generously repay
repeated hearings. They receive dedicated
performances from the Maggini Quartet
who have been and still are closely
involved in this unique undertaking.
Hubert Culot
see also review
by Colin Clarke [Recording
of the Month - October]
Maggini Quartet 
