The winner of the 1965 Grammy for Best Classical Music Performance, Chamber Music was the Juilliard String Quartet for their recording of the six Bartók quartets.
Diva: the 4th quartet
Mensch: the 6th quartet
The 4th quartet is my favorite string quartet ever. It bristles with vitality, wit, and passion. It's challenging not in the sense that it's a challenge to listen to it but because the quality of the music inspires you to sit up straight and really LISTEN. It's like a gauntlet thrown but not the violence of the duel.
The 6th quartet opens with a heartbreaking viola solo. My first roommate in New York was Greg Beaver, cellist of the Chiara String Quartet. I heard them play a two-concert cycle of the Bartók quartets. I heard them do this TWICE! Their violist, Jonah Sirota, is a sublime musician and always made me cry when he played this solo. It felt like a prayer.
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