Originally released in the late '60s and early '70s, the
Yale String Quartet's recordings of
Beethoven's late quartets were the special favorites of the cerebral set. Renown for their acuity, austerity, and asceticism, the
Yale's recordings were equally praised for their warmth, wit, and humanity. In their time, the
Yale's performances were said to be on the same level as the
Amadeus Quartet's sweetly lucid performances, the
Quartetto Italiano's tonally beautiful performances, and even the
Quatour Végh's sublimely spiritual performances. But while those groups' recordings have remained in print more or less continuously down through the digital era, the
Yale Quartet's recordings returned again only briefly on CD, then departed almost as quickly. In this superb 2006 reissue, the
Yale Quartet's late quartets have once more come back into print -- and they sound every bit as good as their reputation. From the simple serenity of the Cavatina to the intellectual vigor of the Grosse Fuge or the ecstatic rapture of the Heiliger Dankgesang, the
Yale Quartet is wholly as one with every aspect of the music and expresses it all in waves of overwhelming intensity. Anyone who loves the late quartets should hear these performances. Fine in its time, Vanguard's stereo recording sounds crisper and deeper on CD. Possibly it's the loss of all that surface noise.