Among the few complaints that have surfaced regarding the Verdi Quartet's very strong cycle of Schubert string quartets has been puzzlement over the seemingly arbitrary distribution of the quartets over the discs in the series -- they're not done chronologically, and pieces from different phases of Schubert's career are mixed together without stated or identifiable rationale. The better to get you to buy the whole series, perhaps, rather than dividing the cycle up between this and one of many competing releases. Actually, ...
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Among the few complaints that have surfaced regarding the Verdi Quartet's very strong cycle of Schubert string quartets has been puzzlement over the seemingly arbitrary distribution of the quartets over the discs in the series -- they're not done chronologically, and pieces from different phases of Schubert's career are mixed together without stated or identifiable rationale. The better to get you to buy the whole series, perhaps, rather than dividing the cycle up between this and one of many competing releases. Actually, though, this trait works to the quartet's advantage in attracting buyers who might be interested in just a single disc; each disc is full of surprises, and the group's superbly sensitive treatment of the young Schubert is brought to the fore. The present disc, for example, goes backward in time, opening with a solid performance of the Quartettsatz (Quartet Movement), D. 703, perhaps the first instance of Schubert's mature chamber music from the last decade of his life. Next, however,...
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