Emilie Mayer: String Quartets Vol. 1

Chronique

The rediscovery of works by women composers was slower to come to Germany than to England or France, but it seems to be in full swing with the works of Emilie Mayer (1812-1883). The Constanze Quartet enters the field with the first in a pair of albums devoted to Mayer's string quartets. Some of Mayer's symphonies and orchestral overtures are quite serious, tightly constructed works. Her string quartets, perhaps due to the expectations of her audience for what a woman might compose, seem to be more conservative; the primary influence here is Mendelssohn, but that assertion covers a lot of ground. The opening String Quartet in G major runs toward the Mozartian side of Mendelssohn, whereas the String Quartet in A major has outbursts of Romantic impulse. The strongest and most daring work here is the concluding String Quartet in E minor, where Mayer gives free rein to her characteristically variable use of dominant seventh chords in a tense, unsettled work. The Constanze Quartet gets the sense of a Romantic mood bubbling under the placid surface, although the group is hampered by bizarrely over-resonant, sepulchral church sound. Those interested in music by women will gladly hear this release, although newcomers might start with Mayer's orchestral music.
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