Tchaikovsky: String Quartets Vol. 2 Dudok Quartet Amsterdam

• Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893): Quartet Movement in B-Flat Major:
• 1 Tchaikovsky: Quartet Movement in B-Flat Major: Adagio misterioso - Allegro con moto 12:46
• String Quartet No. 3 in E-Flat Minor, Op. 30, TH 113:
• 2 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 3 in E-Flat Minor, Op. 30, TH 113: I. Andante sostenuto - Allegro moderato 16:08
• 3 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 3 in E-Flat Minor, Op. 30, TH 113: II. Allegretto vivo e scherzando 04:03
• 4 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 3 in E-Flat Minor, Op. 30, TH 113: III. Andante funebre e doloroso, ma con moto 10:41
• 5 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 3 in E-Flat Minor, Op. 30, TH 113: IV. Finale. Allegro non troppo e risoluto 05:55
• The Seasons, Op. 37a, TH 135:
• 6 Tchaikovsky: The Seasons, Op. 37a, TH 135: III. March. Song of the Lark (Arr. for String Quartet by David Faber) 02:12
• 7 Tchaikovsky: The Seasons, Op. 37a, TH 135: VII. July. Song of the Reaper (Arr. for String Quartet by David Faber) 01:52
• 8 Tchaikovsky: The Seasons, Op. 37a, TH 135: IX. September. The Hunt (Arr. for String Quartet by David Faber) 02:25
• 9 Tchaikovsky: The Seasons, Op. 37a, TH 135: X. October. Autumn Song (Arr. for String Quartet by Marie-Louise de Jong) 04:25
• Total Runtime 01:00:27

Info zu Tchaikovsky: String Quartets Vol. 2

This album forms the conclusion to our journey through Tchaikovsky’s complete string quartets. We explore the limits of his output as a composer of chamber music, from his earliest single-movement student work up until his last string quartet.

Tchaikovsky was, and in so many ways still is, a cult figure whose genius and artistry has been somewhat obscured by his celebrity status and the worldwide popularity of ‘Brand Tchaikovsky’ embodied in his symphonies, operas and ballet music. So the Dudok Quartet went on a mission to reveal new meaning to these quartets, to make them both fresh and relevant to 21st century audiences.

In this concluding second volume of our survey of Tchaikovsky’s complete string quartets, we explore the limits of his output as a composer of chamber music. This album opens with his earliest, single-movement String Quartet in B-flat major and moves on to his ultimate String Quartet No. 3 from 1876. This last work gives shape to Tchaikovsky’s deeply felt exclamation, transformed into music after learning about the passing of his dear friend Ferdinand Laub, the violinist who premiered his earlier two string quartets.

The Dudok Quartet Amsterdam is forging a reputation as one of the most creative and versatile quartets of its generation. With its ethos of ‘sharing the heart of music’, the quartet believes that chamber music is an act of friendship and play to be shared directly with audiences, and is committed to crafting unique and eclectic programmes that engage listeners in imaginative ways.

Constantly searching for and building new musical connections, the players present repertoire ranging from Ligeti and Bacewicz to Mendelssohn and Beethoven, and often create their own arrangements.

They are also committed to commissioning new works and have collaborated with composers including Joey Roukens, Peter Vigh and Theo Loevendie. In 2024 they premiered a new piece by British–Lebanese composer Bushra El-Turk. Another current repertoire highlight is Steve Reich’s Different Trains, for which they made their own recording of the accompanying tape track.

The group has performed at many of Europe’s major venues and festivals and recently made their Australian debut. Forthcoming highlights include recitals at Stockholm Concert Hall, Milton Court and Wigmore Hall and they perform John Adams’ Absolute Jest with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic and Vasily Petrenko at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw.

Dudok Quartet Amsterdam

The Dudok Quartet Amsterdam
is one of the most versatile and appealing string quartets of this time. The quartet’s aim is to share the heart of music through captivating performances and an open approach of the audience.

In June of 2013, the Dudok Quartet Amsterdam has finished their studies at the Dutch String Quartet Academy with highest distinction. In November of 2014 the Dudok Quartet was awarded the Kersjesprize, an award annually given to an ensemble of exceptional talent in the Dutch chamber music scene. The quartet furthermore received top prizes in various international string quartet competitions in Bordeaux (Concours international quatuor à cordes), Weimar (Internationaler Joseph Joachim Kammermusikwettbewerb), The Netherlands (Charles Hennen Competition/Orlando Competition) and Poland (Radom first international string quartet competition)

The members of the quartet first met in the Ricciotti Ensemble, a Dutch street symphony orchestra. The ensemble was founded in 2009. During the first two years since then, the Dudok Quartet Amsterdam studied with the Alban Berg Quartett at the Hochschule für Musik in Cologne. After that, they studied with Marc Danel at the Dutch String Quartet Academy. Further important artistic impulses came from Eberhard Feltz, Peter Cropper (Lindsay Quartet), Luc-Marie Aguera (Quatuor Ysaÿe) and Stefan Metz.

Many well-known contemporary classical composers, such as Kaija Saariaho, Mark-Anthony Turnage, Calliope Tsoupaki and Max Knigge worked with the quartet on their music. In 2014, the Dudok Quartet Amsterdam has signed for several recordings with Resonus Classics, the world’s first solely digital classical music label. Both their first two albums, combining string quartet core repertoire by Haydn and Mozart with both string quartets by György Ligeti and world premieres of the ensembles own arrangements, have been received with unanimous praise in international press reviews including an Editor’s Choice in Gramophone magazine. 2016 saw the premiere of Kaija Saariaho’s opera Only the Sound remains, featuring the Dudok Quartet Amsterdam in a leading role accompanying the world-renowned countertenor Philippe Jaroussky.

The Dudok Quartet Amsterdam has performed with many renowned guest musicians such as recorder player Erik Bosgraaf, pianists Alexei Lubimov, Hannes Minnaar, Ralph van Raat and Daria van den Bercken, and cellists Pieter Wispelwey, Dmitri Ferschtman and Quirine Viersen. The Dudok Quartet Amsterdam performed at many prestigious festivals and venues throughout Europe and in the United States of America, such as the Grachten Festival, the Orlando Festival, Festival Quatuors à Bordeaux and Festival Jeunes Talents (France), Carinthischer Sommer and the Vienna Konzerthaus (Austria), Haydn Festival Fertöd (Hungary), Davos Festival (Switzerland), the Linari Classic Festival (Italy) and the Léon Chamber Music Festival and Festival Música en Segura (Spain), Winter Chamber Music Festival (Il, USA)

Willem Marinus Dudok (1884 – 1974) was a famous Dutch architect. He was also a great lover of music: he came from a musical family and composed music in his spare time. “I owe more to composers than I owe to any architect”, he wrote. “I feel deeply the common core of music and architecture: after all, they both derive their value from the right proportions.”

Booklet für Tchaikovsky: String Quartets Vol. 2