Vítězslav Novák: Kompletní smyčcové kvartety - CD

This CD presents the complete string quartets of Vítězslav Novák, performed by the Stamic Quartet in the ensemble’s first complete recording of his quartet works. Founded in 1985, the Stamic Quartet has achieved many international successes in concert and recording, including complete recordings of the quartet works of J. B. Foerster, Sofia Gubaidulina and Karel Kovařovic for Supraphon. Novák’s quartets span almost forty years, from the first, written when he was a 29-year-old pupil of Dvořák and inspired by the landscapes and folk music of Moravia and Slovakia, to the third, which carries an anxious premonition of war. During this time, his musical language underwent a major stylistic development. From the foundations of musical Romanticism and inspiration from Moravian and Slovak folklore, Novák arrived at a personal style incorporating church modes, the sound world of Impressionism, a polyphonic approach to musical structure, evident in the extensive fugue of the Second Quartet, and rich rhythmic writing. The experienced Stamic Quartet presents the complete quartet works with exceptional commitment.