Leoš Janáček: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2, Concertino Prazak Quartet, Slávka Vernerová Pěchočová, Milan Polák, Lukáš Kořínek, Jan Vobořil

• Leoš Janáček (1854 - 1928): String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata":
• 1 Janáček: String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata": I. Adagio. Con moto 04:11
• 2 Janáček: String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata": II Con moto 04:15
• 3 Janáček: String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata": III. Con moto. Vivace. Andante. Tempo I 03:55
• 4 Janáček: String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata": IV. Con moto 05:10
• Concertino for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, Clarinet, French Horn and Bassoon:
• 5 Janáček: Concertino for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, Clarinet, French Horn and Bassoon: I. Moderato 05:32
• 6 Janáček: Concertino for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, Clarinet, French Horn and Bassoon: II. Più mosso 03:28
• 7 Janáček: Concertino for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, Clarinet, French Horn and Bassoon: III. Con moto 03:11
• 8 Janáček: Concertino for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, Clarinet, French Horn and Bassoon: IV. Allegro 04:32
• String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters":
• 9 Janáček: String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters": I. Andante - Con moto - Allegro 06:05
• 10 Janáček: String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters": II. Adagio - Vivace - Andante - Presto - Allegro - Vivo - Adagio 05:43
• 11 Janáček: String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters": III. Moderato - Adagio - Allegro 05:54
• 12 Janáček: String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters": IV. Allegro - Andante - Con moto - Adagio - Tempo I 07:45
• Total Runtime 59:41

Info for Leoš Janáček: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2, Concertino

Unusual last Janáček chamber programme : the vital string quartets but also the Concertino, an adventurous, amazingly experimental work. Its 'programme' recalls the naturalism and anthropomorphisms of the adventures of the Cunning Little Vixen. The

concluding Allegro, opening with an unpredictable, almost swaggering recitative, is progressively hinged on an increasingly rapid rhythm that leads to a popular scene of jubilation that foreshadows the fanfares of the Glagolitic Mass.

"Three works of chamber music by Leos Janacek (1854-1928). The String Quartet N°1 “Kreutzer Sonata” based on Tolstoy which the composer “approaches like an opera without words, a psychological drama where each instrument can be a voice, can become a character full of expression, capable of following the most direct lingual prosody, from the lover’s lament to the cry,” states Pierre-Emile Barbier. The String Quartet N°2 “Intimate Letters,” which was addressed to Kamila Stösslova, Janacek last love: “I have begun to write something beautiful. It will contain our life. I am calling it “Love Letters.” A single instrument will be the means of expression during the whole work….” Later, Janacek would finish by adopting the subtitle we know today. The Concertino for Piano and Six Instruments dating from 1925 calls for two violins, a viola, a clarinet, a French horn, and a bassoon. With evocative power rarely heard in these admirable pages, the Prazak Quartet offers a confoundingly natural musical discourse by find the perfect balance between passion and melancholy. Each and every musician is praiseworthy and in exemplary artistic communion."

Prazak Quartet
Slavka Pechocova-Vernerova, piano
Milan Polak, clarinet
Lukas Korinek, bassoon
Jan Voboril, french horn

The Pražák Quartet
one of today’s leading international chamber music ensembles - was established in 1972 while its members were students at the Prague Conservatory, and won major chamber music prizes early on, including first prize at the prestigious Evian String Quartet Competition, along with a special recording prize from Radio France. Since then, the quartet has gained attention for its place in the unique Czech quartet tradition, and for its musical virtuosity.

For more than 30 years, the Prazak Quartet has been at home on music stages worldwide. They are regular guests in the major European musical capitals such as Prague, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Milan, Madrid, London, Berlin, and Munich, and have been invited to participate at numerous international festivals, where they have collaborated with such artists as Menahem Pressler, Jon Nakamatsu, Cynthia Phelps, Roberto Diaz, Josef Suk, and Sharon Kam.

The quartet has toured widely in North America, having performed in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Washington, Philadelphia, Toronto, Montreal and many others. The quartet returns to the US and Canada every other year.

The Prazak Quartet has recorded extensively for Praga/Harmonia Mundi which, to date, has released 50 award-winning CDs. In addition to numerous radio recordings in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic, the Prazak Quartet has also made recordings for Supraphon, Panton, Orfeo, Ottavo, Bonton, and Nuova Era.

As of 2020, violinist Marie Fuxová and cellist Jonáš Krejčí joined the quartet. The new members bring their extensive string quartet and chamber music experience, having played with the Pavel Haas, Škampa, Petersen and Schulhoff quartets as well as in many chamber orchestras and ensembles. They bring their experience and energy into the group while remaining faithful to the Czech quartet tradition, character and quality which are the longtime hallmarks of the Pražák Quartet. A new CD with the last string quartets of Josef Haydn will be released on the Aparté/Praga label in August 2021.

Booklet for Leoš Janáček: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2, Concertino