Mikhail Glinka: Gran Sestetto Originale, Divertimento Brillante - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1 Prazak Quartet, Lukáš Klánský, Pavel Nejtek

• Mikhail Glinka (1804 - 1857): Grand Sextet in E-Flat Major:
• 1 Glinka: Grand Sextet in E-Flat Major: I. Allegro 13:09
• 2 Glinka: Grand Sextet in E-Flat Major: II. Andante - attacca - Allegro con spirito 13:12
• Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893): String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11:
• 3 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11: I. Moderato e semplice 10:41
• 4 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11: II. Andante cantabile 06:28
• 5 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11: III. Scherzo. Allegro non tanto 03:59
• 6 Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11: IV. Finale. Allegro giusto 09:25
• Mikhail Glinka: Divertimento Brillante, on Themes from La sonnambula by Vincenzo Bellini:
• 7 Glinka: Divertimento Brillante, on Themes from La sonnambula by Vincenzo Bellini 15:18
• Total Runtime 01:12:12

Info for Mikhail Glinka: Gran Sestetto Originale, Divertimento Brillante - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1

Encounter between Glinka, a pioneer of patriotic Russian opera with Ivan Susanin (A Life for the Tsar, 1839) then Ruslan et Lyudmila (1842) both of them widely influenced by the Italian school. Music scores for sextet pay a joyous and virtuoso tribute to him and his direct model Rossini. In 1871 Tchaikovsky wrote an po11 designed for a chamber orchestra rather than for the sixteen poor strings of a quartet. A forgotten Glinka, Tchaikovsky rendered in its amazingly original intensity by the true slavs that are the Pražák.

Pražák Quartet: (tracks 1-7)
Pavel Hůla, violin
Vlastimil Holek, violin
Josef Klusoň, viola
Michal Kaňka, cello
Lukáš Klánský, piano (tracks 1, 2, 7)
Pavel Nejtek, double bass (tracks 1, 2, 7)

Digitally remastered

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 Mikhail Glinka: Gran Sestetto Originale, Divertimento Brillante - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1