Search - Ernst Toch :: Ernst Toch: String Quartets Nos. 7 & 10; Dedication

Lovely Unknown Works Lovingly and Beautifully Played

J Scott Morrison | Middlebury VT, USA | 12/01/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Before this CD Ernest Toch (1887-1964) had been pretty much terra incognita for me, with the exception of his Third Symphony recorded many years ago by William Steinberg and the Pittsburgh Symphony and which I'd long admired. These two quartets represent the last in the series of performances of all of his extant quartets issued on the cpo label. I have not heard the others, nor the recording of the Quartet No. 7 by the Braude Quartet on the Talent label. Quartet No. 7, still unpublished, was one of Toch's earliest works; the first five quartets, all student works, are probably lost. This piece, certainly NOT a student work by the sound of it, is a sunny work that is entirely tonal, entirely in the Brahms/Dvorák ambit. And entirely lovely. The first, third and final movements are lively, nicely spiced with dance rhythms; the second movement Andantino is filled with lyrical outpourings worthy of either Brahms or Dvorák (and frankly I hear more Bohemia than Vienna here). The Buchberger Quartet plays with fine ensemble, sensitive phrasing and pleasing tone. The recorded sound for this and the other two pieces is spacious and warm. If you love Brahms and Dvorák this quartet is definitely for you. And chances are you've never heard it in performance before, so it will be a wonderful discovery if you get this disc.'Dedication' is a four-minute miniature for string quartet from 1948, quite late in Toch's career. He wrote it for the wedding of his daughter and although his style had changed since the 1907 Quartet No. 7, this piece is in essentially the same style, although there are some hints of Richard Strauss's extended harmonies involved. The main melody is lusciously beautiful and played so by the Buchbergers.Quartet No. 10, Op. 28, is from 1928 and was written for and dedicated to Toch's cousin Hans Bass, in gratitude for the latter's gift to Toch of a complete edition of the works of Mozart, Toch's self-admitted god. Indeed, Toch taught himself to compose as a youngster by copying out Mozart quartets to a point and then closing the score and trying to compose a suitable conclusion. Understandably, then, this quartet is based on melodies that are constructed on the tones B A S S (in German notation B A Es Es), which in non-German notation would be Bb A Eb Eb. And sometimes the musical spelling is varied as B As Es (Bb Ab Eb). In four movements (Energisch [Energetic]; Adagio molto; Katzenhaft schleichend ['slinking like a cat']; and Lebhaft [lively]), this thirty-minute quartet is an unqualified success. The harmonic language is more astringent but unfailingly telling, and Toch's gift for lilting or soaring melody has not abandoned him. The slow movement is the emotional heart of the quartet and, the longest at 13 minutes, is based on the second of the BASS themes. It conveys a heartrending melancholy tinged with regret. In the third movement slithering and scurrying muted strings are alternately playful and mysterious. The finale, in sonata form, draws on elements from the earlier movements and presents a generally rhythmically energetic profile, bringing the whole to a dramatic finish. Not as easily understood as the 7th Quartet on first hearing, this piece rewards repeated listening as more and more felicities of construction make themselves known. As far as I know this is the only recording of this quartet and the Buchbergers do a wonderful job.Strongly recommended.TT=59:55Scott Morrison"

Ravishing string quartets

Jazz fan | New York, New York United States | 03/01/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I stumbled onto Ernst Toch through reading "Vermeer in Bosnia", a collection of essays from the New Yorker by a writer who happens to be Toch's grandson and who happened to write about him in one or two of the essays in that collection. I was curious - and I'm a chamber music fan - so I ordered this cd of string quartets pretty much at random from the discs of Toch's music available. I've now ordered the remaining recorded string quartets and have plans to dabble in the symphonic music as well. I've been listening to this disc over and over again - the music is original and lovely and fascinating. It has ravishing harmonies and gorgeous melodies and a complexity that fascinates without ever becoming academic. I'm no musicologist, but for simplicity's sake think of the autumnal loveliness of Brahms (I mean it!) with some of the purity of Mozart, but with the fascinating complexity of Bartok, as well - but without the harshness that can sometimes come into his music (not that I necessarily oppose harshness, but there's less of it here.) These string quartets really are like lost treasure, and I'm very glad I found them. Toch is one of those unjustly forgotten composers who really was unjustly forgotten (mostly thanks to the Nazis, apparently). It seems inevitable that his music will enter the standard repertoire on its merits - more string quartets will want to tackle this stuff as soon as they hear it (although this performance is terrific.) Highly recommended - enjoy!"