This pioneering American quartet here offers razor-sharp interpretations of a fascinating programme of American-themed pieces, starting with Dvorak's String Quartet No 12 in F, the American. It's evocative of a bright new dawn, whereas Charles Tomlinson Griffes's Two Sketches Based on Indian Themes has a more sombre, ethereal tone. Commissioned by the Cypress String Quartet as a response to string quartets by Beethoven and Mendelssohn, the solemn, haunting melody of Kevin Puts's Lento Assai is unsullied by extreme activity, and thus provides a fine bridge to Barber's String Quartet in B minor, with its emblematic Adagio presented in a more refined, less lushly sentimental manner than usual.
Download: String Quartet No 12 in F; String Quartet in B minor; Two Sketches Based on Indian Themes; Lento Assai
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies