Beethoven: Early String Quartets

Great recordings of Beethoven’s string quartets, as is the case with all of his core repertoire, are available in an embarrassment of riches. This new release of his early quartets, all six of the Opus 18, is nevertheless unique in a number of ways. The Narratio Quartet is a period instrument ensemble, which is rare, but not entirely unknown in this music. What sets them apart is their stated purpose to bring the listener closer to what Beethoven heard in his mind’s ear, via meticulous research (including unearthing written descriptions by the composer’s contemporaries who heard the then new music) and countless hours of rehearsal and conversation. Perhaps surprisingly, the results are remarkably easygoing and spontaneous, elegant and expressive. The surprise is the use of portamento, a largely obsolete practice by which the string players slide from one note to the next, in the manner of a glissando. It is startling to hear at first, but after a short period of immersion, the effect feels natural, and even proper (it helps that the Narratio uses the technique sparingly and with discernment). The music itself conveys the special charms of early Beethoven, with his audacious genius firmly in place, but absent the affectations of his much better-known mature work.