Best known for their praised Sibelius recordings, the quartet has been hailed for their versatile concert progammes both in Finland and abroad. This young ensemble was selected for the »Rising Stars« scheme of the European Concert Hall Organization during the 2000-01 season, which has led to successful début recitals at Carnegie Hall, Wigmore Hall, Musikverein and Concertgebouw and other prestigious venues.Ĭelebrating their 20th anniversary in 2017, has become one of the most established chamber music ensembles in their native Finland. Making their first recording for BIS, it is the Finnish Tempera Quartet which has been entrusted with bringing these forgotten works to the public. The highly informative liner notes helps us to discover foreshadowings of the Lemminkäinen Suite in the Scherzo in B minor as well as pre-echoes of Finlandia in Theme and Variations in C sharp minor. Ranging from very brief sketches to the four-movement String Quartet in E flat major – the only previously recorded work on the disc – these are attractive pieces which bring pleasure to the general listener as well as new insights to the Sibelius fan. But this the first of three discs dedicated to the constellation, focuses on the early works, composed when Sibelius was in his early twenties. Sibelius's masterpiece among string quartets is of course his Op. After the works for violin and piano, the piano trios and – most recently – the piano quartets, the time has come for the genre which conductor George Szell described as »the most perfect expression of human behaviour«. In the course of the ongoing BIS Sibelius Edition – of which this disc is the 56th volume – recent releases have explored the chamber music of the great symphonist. Info for Sibelius: String Quartet in E-Flat Major / Theme and Variations in C-Sharp Minor 52 Andante molto sostenuto in B Minor, JS 37 08:12.51 Andante - Allegro molto in D Major, JS 32 06:25.50 Allegro in G Minor: in G Minor 00:42.49 33 Small Pieces: Moderato in D Major 01:03.48 33 Small Pieces: Andantino in A Major 00:21.47 33 Small Pieces: Andante in E-Flat Major 00:22.46 33 Small Pieces: Alla marcia in E Major 00:23.45 33 Small Pieces: Andantino in D Major 00:21.44 33 Small Pieces: Andante in C Major 00:27.43 33 Small Pieces: Presto in C Major 00:12.42 33 Small Pieces: Allegretto in A Minor 00:20.41 33 Small Pieces: Moderato in G Major 00:25.30 33 Small Pieces: C Minor - E-Flat Major 00:21.22 33 Small Pieces: F-Sharp Minor 00:27.

18 33 Small Pieces: A Minor - C Major 00:21.16 Theme and Variations in C-Sharp Minor, JS 195 (completed by Kalevi Aho) 06:32.13 3 Pieces: Theme and Variations in G Minor, JS 197 01:32.12 3 Pieces: Presto in F Major, JS 154 00:58.11 3 Pieces: Alla marcia in E Minor, JS 16 01:01.6 String Quartet in E-Flat Major, JS 184: IV.5 String Quartet in E-Flat Major, JS 184: III.4 String Quartet in E-Flat Major, JS 184: II.3 String Quartet in E-Flat Major, JS 184: I.Aho): in B Minor (completed by Kalevi Aho) 00:53 1 Molto moderato - Scherzo, JS 134 04:23.

Sibelius string quartets