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Haydn: String Quartets, Op. 33 "Russian" Nos. 4-6 on SACD

Following the release of the first three quartets of the

Op. 33 set in May 2023 [BIS-2588], a recording that was

hailed by critics for it's 'extraordinarily faithful reading

that goes straight to the heart of the works' (Diapason)

and won numerous awards (including a Diapason d'or,

Choc from Classica and Supersonic from Pizzicato), the

Chiaroscuro Quartet presents the last three quartets in

this set. Having already recorded Op. 20 and Op. 76, this

ensemble, whose unique sound has been described as 'a

shock to the ears of the best kind' (The Observer) here

continues it's historically informed and illuminating

journey through Joseph Haydn's string quartets, a long-

term project that started in 2020.

Dubbed the 'Russian Quartets' and dedicated to the

Russian Grand Duke Paul, the future Tsar Paul I, these

works show Haydn at his most eccentric and non-

conformist. For this set, Haydn felt the need to write

music more in keeping with the public's lighter, more

'popular', less 'scholarly' tastes, with a livelier sense of

rhythm. With their stylistic advance over the preceding

quartets, it can be said that in real terms they mark the

birth of the classical quartet genre. Mozart drew

inspiration from them for his own quartets 'dedicated to

Haydn'.