Mendelssohn String Quartet - Harvard Composers (Hybrid) - SUPER-AUDIO CD [Super Audio CD (SACD)]

CD + Blu-ray edition. In celebration of their 20th Anniversary, ground-breaking classical crossover group Il Divo, perform a very special evening of music at the Taipei Music Center, Taiwan. Delivering timeless pop classics and traditional standards, Il Divo raise the bar, reinforcing their status as performers and vocal power-houses. Comprising Urs Bühler (tenor) of Switzerland, Sébastien Izambard (tenor) of France, David Miller (tenor) of America, and new member Steven LaBrie (baritone) of America, the quartet present a truly cinematic musical experience that will remain a bench mark in audio visual performance for decades to come. Complementing the music, Il Divo also document the first 20 years of their career, set against the modern cosmopolitan metropolis of Taipei, as they take us through the journey so far and future aspirations. Presented in glorious 4k video and 5.1 audio.

Alongside it's ongoing and much lauded Haydn and Schubert series, both on-stage and on-record, the Doric String Quartet with this Mendelssohn album is adding a new milestone in it's repertoire. Mendelssohn wrote and published these three quartets at very different stages in his life and they therefore outline the complete trajectory of his creative output. The early Op. 12, also called No. 1, was composed in London and includes many musical allusions to Beethoven, dead only a few years before it's composition. These subtly contrast with Mendelssohn's genially flowing energy. While Op. 44 No. 3, which incorporates many deft variations, developments, and combinations, follows an extended honeymoon tour and Mendelssohn's twenty-ninth birthday, Op. 80 emerged from a bout of helpless depression after the sudden death of Mendelssohn's older sister and confidante, Fanny. Mendelssohn described this quartet as a Requiem, and the nervous agitation often found in his music here bursts forth with full force. Resignation, agitation, and nostalgia shape the work, the almost shocking finality of which may be said to prefigure Mendelssohn's own death only six months later.

Mendelssohn / Guarneri Quartet - String [COMPACT DISCS] date 09/01/2015