These 1970s recordings make their first appearance on CD in this compilation and are masterfully performed by the Beaux Arts Trio and Walter Trampler. Dvorak’s two piano quartets have lain in the shade of his glorious Op. 81 Piano Quintet, but where this composer’s chamber music is concerned, beautiful surprises await the listener who steps off the beaten path. The music is rich and colourful and the performers capture the full range of sonority these works offer.
The Beaux Arts Trio plus Walter Trampler deliver a fine performance, with their typically excellent ensemble balance and a particularly flowing and cogent account of the magnificent central variation movement [of the First Piano Quartet] -CLASSICS TODAY
1 Piano Quartet No.2 in E Flat Major, Op.87 – I Allegro Con Fuoco (Dvorak)
2 Piano Quartet No.2 in E Flat Major, Op.87 – II Lento (Dvorak)
3 Piano Quartet No.2 in E Flat Major, Op.87 – III Allegro Moderato Grazioso (Dvorak)
4 Piano Quartet No.2 in E Flat Major, Op.87 – IV Finale (Allegro Ma Non Troppo)(Dvorak)
5 Piano Quartet No.1 in D Major, Op.23 – I Allegro Moderato (Dvorak)
6 Piano Quartet No.1 in D Major, Op.23 – II Andantino, Con Variazioni (Dvorak)
7 Piano Quartet No.1 in D Major, Op.23 – III Finale (Allegretto Scherzando)(Dvorak)