Aho: String Quartets 1 - 3 Stenhammar Quartet

• Kalevi Aho (b. 1949): String Quartet No. 2:
• 1 Aho: String Quartet No. 2: I. Adagio 05:15
• 2 Aho: String Quartet No. 2: II. Presto 06:49
• 3 Aho: String Quartet No. 2: III. Adagio 03:16
• String Quartet No. 3:
• 4 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: I. Vivace 03:25
• 5 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: II. Andante 03:26
• 6 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: III. Presto 00:47
• 7 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: IV. Allegro non troppo 02:36
• 8 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: V. Presto 01:27
• 9 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: VI. Meno mosso 01:23
• 10 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: VII. Adagio 02:12
• 11 Aho: String Quartet No. 3: VIII. Allegretto 03:32
• String Quartet No. 1:
• 12 Aho: String Quartet No. 1: I. Moderato 07:02
• 13 Aho: String Quartet No. 1: II. Andante - Vivace - Andante 06:02
• 14 Aho: String Quartet No. 1: III. Presto 06:51
• 15 Aho: String Quartet No. 1: IV. Andante 07:00
• Total Runtime 01:01:03

Info for Aho: String Quartets 1 - 3

Finnish composer Kalevi Aho has produced a considerable and varied body of work that continues to grow rapidly. Aho first tackled the genre of string quartet at the very beginning of his composing career, more than fifty years ago, and has only recently returned to it. Aho was only 18 when he completed his String Quartet No. 1 in 1967. Self-taught at the time, Aho took his inspiration from the essentially tonal music he played on the violin or heard on the radio. The Second Quartet was composed in 1970, during his second year of studies at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki with Einojuhani Rautavaara and uses fugue technique in each of it's movements. The first performance of the quartet received excellent reviews and marked a minor breakthrough for Aho as a composer.The Third Quartet dates from the following year and marks the end of Aho's studies with Rautavaara. In this work Aho's personal language begins to emerge, although the influence of Shostakovich can also be heard. The work was a great success and has been performed more often than any of his other chamber compositions. The three string quartets are performed here by the Stenhammar Quartet, one of Scandinavia's leading string quartets, whose extensive repertoire gives prominence to contemporary music from the Nordic countries.

Stenhammar Quartet

Stenhammar Quartet
Since its establishment in 2002, the Stenhammar Quartet has become one of Scandinavia’s foremost string quartets. Swedish works play a central part in the ensemble’s programmes, but much attention is also paid to the Viennese Classical repertoire and to contem- porary music. The quartet regularly commissions works from Nordic composers such as Sven-David Sandström, Anders Hillborg and Bent Sörensen, and has also been the dedicatee and given the first performances of works by composers from the USA and Great Britain. The Stenhammar Quartet has recorded some forty works for Swedish Radio and has been praised by The Strad and The Guardian for its lyrical and exceptional recordings of Wilhelm Stenhammar’s string quartets (Bis) Their recording of Lars-Erik Larsson’s complete string quartets (Daphne) received a nomination for the Swedish Grammy awards as well as critical acclaim both in Swedish and international music magazines.

In 2009 the quartet made its London debut and was that same year featured on the French music channel Mezzo.

The Stenhammar Quartet is a regular guest at many Scandinavian festivals and has recently been invited to festivals in Poland, Algeria and India.

Booklet for Aho: String Quartets 1 - 3