Quatuor Molinari - Scelsi: Intégrale des quatuors à cordes et Trio à cordes (2024) [Official Digital Download 24/96]

On their latest recording, the acclaimed Molinari Quartet delves into the complete string quartet cycle of iconoclast Italian composer, Giacinto Scelsi (1905-1988).

An unusual creator known for his experimental approach, Scelsi had two great periods of musical production: the first from 1929 to the mid‑1950s, which included a period of refuge in Switzerland, and the second until his death in 1988.

During the first period, Scelsi’s writing was inspired by the composers of the Second Viennese School, in particular Schoenberg, with whom he studied in Vienna. His works from that period are dodecaphonic, atonal or serial. During the second period, he suffered a serious psychological crisis and stopped composing for several years. When Scelsi finally resumed writing, he concentrated on monody. Melodies gave way to timbral interplay, which became the focus of Scelsi’s musical preoccupations.

The album includes Scelsi’s most famous and controversial work, his 1958 String Trio in four movements, each centered on a single note. The rhythmic simplicity of this work shifts the focus to musical colors and textures.

Internationally acclaimed by the public and the critics since its foundation in 1997, the Molinari Quartet has given itself the mandate to perform works from the 20th- and the 21st-century repertoire for string quartet, to commission new works and to initiate discussions between musicians, artists and the public. Recipient of 23 Opus Prizes awarded by the Quebec Music Council for musical excellence on the Quebec concert stage, the Molinari Quartet as been described by the critics as an “essential” and “prodigious” ensemble, even “Canada’s answer to the Kronos or Arditti Quartet”.

The Molinari Quartet has established itself as one of Canada’s leading string quartets. In addition to many Canadian works, including the 13 quartets by R. Murray Schafer, the Molinari Quartet’s repertoire includes quartets by Bartók, Berg, Britten, Debussy, Dutilleux, Glass, Gubaidulina, Kurtág, Ligeti, Lutoslawski, Martinů, Penderecki, Ravel, Scelsi, Schnittke, Shostakovich, Webern, and Zorn.

The Molinari Quartet was heard twice as soloist with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal under Charles Dutoit and in the spring of 2018, it premiered the Concerto for string quartet and orchestra by Samy Moussa with the Orchestre Métropolitain of Montréal under the direction of Nicholas Carter. The Quartet has been invited to perform in numerous concert series and festivals in Canada, Mexico, China, and Europe.

Its recordings on the ATMA Classique label have received international critical acclaim including two Editors’ Choices by Gramophone magazine and rave revues from, among others, The Strad, Fanfare, and Diapason. Its recording of the complete György Kurtág quartets has received a Diapason d’Or in December 2016 and the prestigious German Echo Klassik award for 20th- and 21st-century chamber music in July 2017.

Launched in October 2001, the Molinari Quartet International Competition for Composition has had an enormous success. Over its eight editions, it has received over 1000 new quartet scores from 75 countries.

Tracklist:
CD1
1. String Quartet No. 1 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 1: I. Quasi Lento – Agitato – Molto sostenuto ed intenso – Con esaltazione esasperata – Vivace – Andant (9:40)
2. String Quartet No. 1 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 1: II. Molto lento, quasi funebre – Pesante (11:09)
3. String Quartet No. 1 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 1: III. Scherzo (2:59)
4. String Quartet No. 1 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 1: IV. Moderato – Deciso – Dolcissimo (9:57)
5. String Trio : Scelsi: String Trio: I. (4:12)
6. String Trio : Scelsi: String Trio: II. (2:56)
7. String Trio : Scelsi: String Trio: III. (2:43)
8. String Trio : Scelsi: String Trio: IV. (4:02)

CD2
1. String Quartet No. 2 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 2: I. (3:33)
2. String Quartet No. 2 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 2: II. (4:17)
3. String Quartet No. 2 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 2: III. (3:08)
4. String Quartet No. 2 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 2: IV. (3:33)
5. String Quartet No. 2 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 2: V. (4:35)
6. String Quartet No. 3 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 3: I. Avec une grande tendresse (dolcissimo) (4:01)
7. String Quartet No. 3 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 3: II. L'appel de l'esprit, dualisme, ambivalence, conflit (drammatico) (3:30)
8. String Quartet No. 3 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 3: III. L'âme se réveille (con transparenza) (3:40)
9. String Quartet No. 3 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 3: IV. … et tombe de nouveau dans le pathos, mais maintenant avec un pressentiment de la libération ( (3:47)
10. String Quartet No. 3 : Scelsi: String Quartet No. 3: V. Libération, catharsis (3:01)
11. Scelsi: String Quartet No. 4 (10:17)
12. Scelsi: String Quartet No. 5 (6:55)


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