Mendelssohn: String Quartet No. 2, Op. 13 - Beethoven: String Quartet No. 15, Op. 132

Album review

Ten bananas, eight energy snacks, twelve apples, five bars of chocolate, 32 cups of tea, three scarfs, six jumpers, two jackets, and then, four days later, it’s done: our recorded version of Beethoven’s opus 132 and Mendelssohn’s opus 13. We can hardly believe it.

Two works from the very heart of the string quartet repertoire, and related to one another in a special way. Mendelssohn wrote his string quartet a few months after Beethoven’s death and it clearly shows that he was strongly inspired by Beethoven’s late string quartets, specifically his opus 132. Not just the key but also the form and the thematic material show many resemblances. The two works seem to us to be a diptych; they mirror one another. The reflection isn’t a crystal clear one, but it shows the connection between two heavyweights.
It’s the indescribable greatness and depth of this music which years ago awoke our desire to play quartets and still drives us today. These are works which will never be ‘finished’. They’ll al- ways go on developing and ripening in our minds, to be played as new at each concert.

So it was a really exciting CD to make, and when we were done we would have liked to just start again from the beginning. We sincerely hope you will enjoy the greatness of this music as much as we do.

Ragazze Quartet