Let’s start with the label, with its amusing logo and intriguing name: Evil Penguin. This is a Belgium production, which their website describes, not once, but twice, as a “boutique” label, with claims of being artist-driven, specializing in repertoire which “goes beyond the standard catalog”, and in-house expertise leading the way in “immersive” audio. Marketing hype aside, based on what I hear on this CD, it’s no mere hype. The sound is excellent, as is the playing of this string quartet based in Brussels.
Getting to the music, I jumped ahead and listened to the String Quartet (#4) first, a very popular piece lately which I’ve encountered twice already this year – neither of which was entirely satisfactory (please see reviews here on my blog). After a disappointing new recording from the Telegraph Quartet on Azica Records last month, I was anxious to hear another new group have a fresh go at it – hoping for all the world they would make me truly love it again. And oh my goodness do they ever.
The very opening is an almost inaudible ppp, prompting me to turn up the volume just to hear it. And as the music gets underway, the first thing I notice, besides the wide dynamic range, is the natural perspective of the recorded sound – which places the group slightly close to the listener, with palpable immediacy within a spacious acoustic. And also the sheer gorgeousness of the group’s blend – with the luxurious sound of the viola being particularly notable. So already I’m hearing significant improvements over the Telegraph Quartet’s recording of the piece. Musically too, the music-making here conveys a communicative intimacy as if telling a story. And I’m so drawn into the music, I completely forget I’m listening to a recording.
As the movement progresses, I am struck by this cellist’s playing (Julia Kotarba) in the many solo passages. I uttered an “oh my god” upon hearing her first solo, which is ravishing in its voluptuousness. Then a few bars later, she eases her sound into a more plaintive expressiveness, tempering the intensity of the vibrato, befitting the musical line. And as the music unfolds, I hear this variety of tone color, vibrato and dynamics from the entire group – individually and as a unified ensemble. The result is a spontaneous outpouring of expression and musical involvement which is rare to hear, especially on a recording. I’m enthralled, and once again marvel at the wonderment of Bacewicz’s musical creation. The group continues building the music with enraptured intensity, culminating in an urgency in the closing section which sounds more exciting than I would have ever expected it could be.
The Andante, then, is expressive, but with a singing simplicity which is captivating. There is a natural clarity to their ensemble which allows each individual solo line to sing out clearly, while surrounded by a rich harmonic blend from the rest of the group supporting it. There is a pervading feeling of melancholy here, but also a bit of hopefulness in the closing measures which I had not experienced in this movement before. Very, very nice.
And finally, the Allegro giocoso is fleet, but full-bodied too. Even light on their feet and incisively articulate and detailed (all wholly appropriate for the music), this superb group retains their body of tone – as opposed to the somewhat clinical transparency of the Telegraph Quartet. Thus there is a certain gravitas along with an exuberant freshness to their interpretation which is irresistible. And they bring the piece to an invigorating close.
The Karski Quartet displays a unified purpose and direction to each movement, further demonstrating a thorough understanding of the overall scope of the piece as a whole. This, along with their blended sound and variety of color, texture and dynamic contrasts, makes it without doubt the most satisfying, rewarding, and musically enriching recording of the piece I’ve yet heard. It is so wonderful, I can only hope the group has plans to record more of these marvelous string quartets from this endlessly creative composer.
After that, I couldn’t wait to hear them play the Piano Quintet #1, which comes first on the CD. I recall enjoying both of Bacewicz’s Piano Quintets on the 2018 Chandos recording played by the Silesian Quartet. But I have not returned to it and have no lasting memory of them. Eager to get reacquainted, I sat back and listened, hoping the perfection of the recorded sound in the Quartet has not been disturbed by the addition of a piano.
And it hasn’t. The piano is placed naturally behind the strings at a slight distance, not at all imposing or domineering. (More on this in a moment.) Though I’m not sure I like the sound of the very opening of the Moderato. It begins tentatively – very slowly and extremely mysterioso – but with an almost harsh starkness from the strings played sans vibrato, emphasized somewhat by the slightly close-up recording. Curious why they would play it this way, a quick check of the Silesians on Chandos reveals they execute it similarly.1 Bacewicz’s indication in the score is molto espressivo, so this doesn’t make much sense. Fortunately they don’t continue with it for long, and as the music soon swells, so does the expression in their playing. And soon, the main Allegro takes flight, suffused with drama and enriched with passion. And I’m thoroughly engaged once more. The rhapsodic section near the end is especially memorable, with voluptuous string playing.
The relatively short Presto is lively – coquettish and even a bit skittish – featuring, at one point, some stunning 1st violin exclamations on the G string. And just as with the cello solo heard before in the Quartet, I virtually gasped at the gorgeous tone heard from this violinist (Kaja Nowak) – enhanced in no small part by the immediacy of the recording. This short little scherzo is delightful, and energetic too, with some impressive, scintillating piano playing by Jams Coleman.
Everything comes to a halt as the funereal Grave steals in. They take a daringly slow tempo in this movement, clocking in at well over a minute longer than the Silesian Quartet on Chandos. But they imbue it with a singing sensuality which keeps the listener fully engaged. And as it’s marked grave, I can’t fault them. Curious though, I stopped here to make another back-to-back comparison with the Silesians, whose playing of this is somewhat different – simpler and less intense, with a slightly more forward-moving tempo. And the piano tone is a bit different as well. The Chandos recording affords the piano a darker, richer and more resonant tone in the lower registers compared to the one heard on Evil Penguin. The entire perspective is slightly distanced and more atmospheric – all to great effect. But the closer perspective afforded the Karskis is in no way detrimental. Just…different.
The 4th movement then is a striking contrast. It is nervous and energetic, played with verve and a tantalizing friskiness. It’s marked con passione, and the group really brings it in the sensual second subject, which sounds downright seductive. And another comparison here with the Silesians proves informative. They play it slightly faster still – a bit more vivacious, yet lyrical at the same time. And again, the slightly more distanced Chandos recording is entirely beneficial, with a gain in atmosphere and a more clearly defined piano, with more sparkle to the higher octaves. Very nice. Both recordings are very satisfying, each in their distinctive ways, and it would be difficult to choose one over the other. Though if hard pressed, I suppose my preference would be the Silesians for their slightly more moving tempos and even more alluring recorded sound. But only just.
Curiously, the Karskis chose to close their concert with an oddity – an arrangement for string quartet of a traditional Polish folk song. It’s slow and lyrical, and actually very moving. It certainly displays the group’s richly blended sound at its most beautiful. However, I would have much preferred another major composition by Bacewicz herself to round out the program. With the total playing time on this CD of just 52 minutes (5 of that taken up by this little arrangement), there was plenty of room for another substantial work – perhaps another one of her string quartets, which the catalog desperately needs; or even the 2nd Piano Quintet, given the pianist was already on hand there in the studio with them.
A note about the production. The cover art and booklet are attractive and of very high quality. There are whimsical pictures of the musicians in a variety of settings, and some useful information in the booklet about the composer, the Karski Quartet and the pianist – but almost nothing about the pieces being played. How odd. For a boutique label “specializing in non-standard repertoire”, I would have expected in-depth program notes about both works. However, they make up for it with excellent recorded sound – which cannot be taken for granted from any label. Other than the unreasonably short playing time, overall I am impressed with Evil Penguin.
Postscript: Since writing the less-than-favorable review of the Telegraph Quartet’s recent Azica recording (which included Bacewicz’s 4th Quartet), I’ve often wondered if I had been too critical of it. But hearing how excellent this new Karski Quartet recording is – not only the playing itself, but also the recorded sound – confirms I was not. When you have such an accomplished ensemble like the Karski Quartet playing enticing and rewarding repertoire, natural recorded sound is absolutely essential for full enjoyment. And when it all comes together, as it most certainly does here – especially in the 4th Quartet, you have one hell of a recording.
1 And sampling several other recordings online, so do most other groups.
