The fact that Mieczyslaw Weinberg's (1919-1996) music still remains in the shadow of his contemporary Dmitri Shostakovich's (1906-1975) cannot be adequately explained from a purely qualitative perspective, while the chances of it ever achieving a true breakthrough seem rather slim. I fear that the relatively extensive attention we have given to Weinberg and his music will do little to change this in the long run. Even the many world-class musicians who have devoted themselves to Weinberg's oeuvre will have to accept this as part of the bargain (and undoubtedly have). Even the phenomenally gifted Arcadia Quartet, founded in 2006, finds itself confronted from the outset with this seemingly insurmountable public fortress.
With the performance of all seventeen string quartets (this is the fifth and penultimate installment in the series), it follows in the footsteps of the equally eminent Franco-Belgian Quatuor Danel (which has also made considerable contributions to the complete string quartets of Shostakovich).
Like the earlier volumes, the program is not arranged in chronological order, but according to different periods in Weinberg's development as a composer. This in itself creates considerable contrasts. Among these is what is widely regarded as Weinberg's first 'mature' quartet, the three-movement third quartet composed in 1944. The ninth quartet (1963) dates from a decade in which Weinberg's composing received much praise from an influential group of musicians, including the Borodin Quartet, conductors Kirill Kondrashin and Rudolf Barshai, pianist Emil Gilels, and violinist Leonid Kogan. In the fourteenth quartet (1978), composed three years after the death of his good friend and mentor Shostakovich, Weinberg's search for his artistic identity is reflected. Appropriately serving as a fine closing piece is the short Improvisation and Romance from 1950.
Weinberg (r.) and his wife Olga Rakhalskaja during the premiere of Shostakovich's Fifteenth Symphony (l.) on January 8, 1972
In the Arcadia's performance, there is such artistic maturity and drive that it creates a remarkable listening experience. The mood shifts, from melancholic or cynical to decidedly somber or even menacing, are sublimely 'captured' by the ensemble; and at an exceptionally high level of technical mastery. The razor-sharp articulation, the richly varied tonal colors, the dynamic intensity, the refined phrasing: it all contributes to truly outstanding performances that are in no way hindered by the brilliant recording.
