String Quartet in CD 46/Qu

Description

D. 68, written when Schubert was 16, is a curious piece. Its two movements are the first and last of a normal String Quartet and may not even belong together. The first movement starts out very conventionally, but Schubert's mature style and expressiveness crop up briefly in the development. The finale is very much like Haydn and almost as witty. D. 46, written about three months earlier, is a surprisingly excellent piece, maybe not as moving as late Schubert but astonishingly effective for teenage work. It's one of the great discoveries of this wonderful series, which continues to be convincingly performed throughout. The Comic Ländler, a brief set of dances for two violins, is thoroughly charming. --Leslie Gerber