Album
Pavel Haas Quartet
Martinů: String Quartets Nos 2, 3, 5, 7
Catalogue Number: SU 4368-2
Published: 19th September 2025
First release: SUPRAPHON 2025
Genre: Chamber Music
Format: 1 CD
This album has received following awards:
- Recording of the Week, Presto Music (2025)
- Album of the Week, Europadisc (2025)
- Supersonic Pizzicato (2025)
Bohuslav Martinů – string quartets No. 2, H 150, No. 3, H 183, No. 5, H 268, No. 7 (Concerto da camera), H 314
Pavel Haas Quartet: Veronika Jarůšková – 1st violin, Marek Zwiebel – 2nd violin, Šimon Truszka – viola, Peter Jarůšek – cello
Pavel Haas Quartet, one of the very top ensembles on the worldwide chamber music scene, has been devoting itself to works for quartet by Bohuslav Martinů for a number of years and has given complete presentations of them, including a series of concerts at London’s Wigmore Hall. Martinů’s deep affinity for the quartet genre is evident throughout his oeuvre: “I can’t tell you what pleasure I feel when working with those four voices… I somehow feel at home with the quartet, intimate, happy… Being independent, free, they do as they wish, and despite that, they create harmonious interplay, forming something, a new entity and a harmonic whole”. For this recording, they have chosen the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 7th quartets – four widely different worlds that together create an exciting musical arch spanning more than two decades of the 20th century. The Second String Quartet was Martinů’s breakthrough, earning him international attention, then in the Third the composer gave himself plenty of room for experimentation. The Fifth (Paris, 1938) is full of emotions and inner tension, while in the post-war Seventh (New York 1947), Martinů seems to have returned to Dvořákian romantic lyricism and melodiousness. In interpretations by the Pavel Haas Quartet, these works are heard with an new, unexpected intensity. Renowned for their rich, colourful sound, fascinating interplay, and feel for details, the Pavel Haas Quartet is able not only to understand Martinů’s language, but also to communicate it convincingly and draw listeners into the inner world of one of the greatest Czech composers of the 20th century.
Martinů in the hands of the Pavel Haas Quartet – revealing and captivating
Pavel Haas Quartet: Veronika Jarůšková – 1st violin, Marek Zwiebel – 2nd violin, Šimon Truszka – viola, Peter Jarůšek – cello
Pavel Haas Quartet, one of the very top ensembles on the worldwide chamber music scene, has been devoting itself to works for quartet by Bohuslav Martinů for a number of years and has given complete presentations of them, including a series of concerts at London’s Wigmore Hall. Martinů’s deep affinity for the quartet genre is evident throughout his oeuvre: “I can’t tell you what pleasure I feel when working with those four voices… I somehow feel at home with the quartet, intimate, happy… Being independent, free, they do as they wish, and despite that, they create harmonious interplay, forming something, a new entity and a harmonic whole”. For this recording, they have chosen the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 7th quartets – four widely different worlds that together create an exciting musical arch spanning more than two decades of the 20th century. The Second String Quartet was Martinů’s breakthrough, earning him international attention, then in the Third the composer gave himself plenty of room for experimentation. The Fifth (Paris, 1938) is full of emotions and inner tension, while in the post-war Seventh (New York 1947), Martinů seems to have returned to Dvořákian romantic lyricism and melodiousness. In interpretations by the Pavel Haas Quartet, these works are heard with an new, unexpected intensity. Renowned for their rich, colourful sound, fascinating interplay, and feel for details, the Pavel Haas Quartet is able not only to understand Martinů’s language, but also to communicate it convincingly and draw listeners into the inner world of one of the greatest Czech composers of the 20th century.
Martinů in the hands of the Pavel Haas Quartet – revealing and captivating
Reviews
“I was immediately struck by their seemingly telepathic ability to be completely fluid in their tempos… there's a richness and depth to their tone that often tricks the ear into thinking there must be an entire string section at play. The highlight is arguably their performance of Quartet No. 3, with the last movement containing some of the most jaw-droppingly virtuosic string playing I have heard for some time… In short, another stunning album from the Pavel Haas Quartet.”
Presto Music, September 2025
“In the hands of the PHQ, the Fifth Quartet easily stands comparison with Shostakovich at his best, and deserves a place alongside the works of Janáček and Haas in the list of great Czech 20th-century quartets… Like everything on this generously-filled disc, the Seventh Quartet is splendidly characterised by the Pavel Haas players, and once again they have delivered performances that could quite easily become regarded as definitive. This is an album that should give Martinů’s reputation as a quartet composer an enormous boost, and we recommend it with the heartiest enthusiasm.”
Europadisc, September 2025
“Das Pavel Haas Quartet formt diese vier Werke jeweils in der jedem eigenen Ausdrucksweise, so dass die Unterschiedlichkeit der Quartette bestens herausgeschält wird. Dabei vergessen sie nicht, immer auch die modernen Aspekte der Musik zu zeigen, ohne auch die lokalen Bezüge im Charakter durchschimmern zu lassen. Doch hier bleiben sie im Rahmen der von Martinu gewünschten Objektivität. Das superb aufeinander abgestimmte Spiel, bei dem der klangliche Gesamteindruck des Ensembles im Vordergrund steht, ohne deswegen eine unstrukturierte Mischwirkung zu erzeugen, führt sie zu stark profilierten Interpretationen.”
Pizzicato, September 2025
“The fifth quartet of Martinu, contemporaneous with their affair, is sombre, ominous, full of short bowings and plucked strings. Its finale has an end-of-the-world air about it. Compared to the 2nd, 3rd and 7th quartets on this album, it is achingly introspective and completely void of the Czech tunes that Martinu called on for moral support. This uncommonly dark Martinu mood is brought out with gripping veracity by the flawless, top-flight Pavel Haas Quartet.”
Myscena, September 2025
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Bohuslav Martinů
String Quartet No. 5, H 268
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| 1. | I. Allegro ma non troppo | 05:59 | |
| 2. | II. Adagio | 06:39 | |
| 3. | III. Allegro vivo | 04:51 | |
| 4. | IV. Lento - Allegro | 08:14 | |
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Bohuslav Martinů
String Quartet No. 3, H 183
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| 5. | I. Allegro | 04:27 | |
| 6. | II. Andante | 05:11 | |
| 7. | III. Vivo | 03:36 | |
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Bohuslav Martinů
String Quartet No. 7, H 314 “Concerto da camera”
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| 8. | I. Poco allegro | 06:53 | |
| 9. | II. Andante | 07:06 | |
| 10. | III. Allegro vivo | 05:54 | |
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Bohuslav Martinů
String Quartet No. 2, H 150
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| 11. | I. Moderato - Allegro vivace | 07:38 | |
| 12. | II. Andante | 05:47 | |
| 13. | III. Allegro | 06:32 | |