BARTOK: 6 String Quartets – Juilliard String Quartet – Sony Classical 77119 (3 discs), 157:45 ****:
I am of several minds about this release, mostly due to production questions. The Juilliard Quartet was one of he first to record these quartets in toto, and did so in 1950 before following up with another in 1963 (this one) and yet again in 1981 (not as well received). There is no doubt that the ’63 is the one to have, possibly the best version these works have ever had, their incisiveness and utterly wrenching zestful approach well-nigh perfect for Bartok’s varied (the pieces were created over a period of 31 years and all on Hungarian soil—the Sixth being his last work completed in his homeland) and astoundingly perfect creations.
But—the sound on these CDs isn’t much of an improvement—if at all—over the LPs, which were always rather closely recorded, lacked breathing room, and rather shrill, as on many Columbia’s of the day. You still hear a lot of compression in the louder passages, and some slight distortion. But as for the quality of the performances, they are hard to match.
Yet, the Emerson Quartet’s acclaimed 1990 recording of all six may have done just that, and with sound that possesses an airiness that the Juilliard can only envy. Some critics at the time were even calling this the Juilliard reincarnated, and it is not hard to see why—they nearly match the older quartet in passion, and are their equal in execution. But the Juilliard has something that the Emerson didn’t and that is a still-fresh sense of discovery, as if they were bringing to light a body of work that was still very much misunderstood and needed a pioneering spirit to convince a wary public, not unlike Bernstein’s early Mahler recordings. That feeling of un-chartered territory permeates the Juilliard reading whereas the Emerson is giving a near-definitive take on masterworks now easily accepted into the canon.
This is a Sony release from arkivmusic.com that licensed the recording, and is presented with original artwork on the cover and original liner notes as well. Arkivmusic has done a great service for collectors; releasing hundreds of albums that the majors, for whatever stupid reason, refuse to do (I can’t believe that Sony Classical has never released this one whole). But they aren’t cheap generally speaking, which makes me wonder about some of the prices, usually a single disc going for around sixteen bucks, as much as a full-price modern recording, and without any overhead costs associated with recording. Maybe the companies Arkivmusic is contracting with are charging them an arm and a leg, I don’t know, but I do know that if Sony itself released this is would probably be cheaper, as has been the case with those recordings from yesteryear that it has released. This one is going for 30 bucks, and when you consider that the Emerson can now be had—and on two CDs as well, which the Juilliard could have been released as—for 20 bucks, well, the choice becomes more difficult.
I grew up with this set, and it is from the Juilliard that I learned this music, so this is mandatory for me, as I suspect it will be for many others as well. But if you are new to this music, save your 10-spot and invest it in the DGG Emerson, a wise economic move!
— Steven Ritter
