Alban Berg Quartett - Debussy, Ravel: String Quartets, Stravinsky: 3 Pieces, Concertino, Double Canon (2001)

First released in 1984 and reissued in 2001, this disc featuring the Alban Berg Quartet's recordings of the string quartets of Debussy and Ravel, as well as Stravinsky's Three Pieces, Concertino, and Double Canon for string quartet should never be out of the catalog. The Alban Berg Quartet is not necessarily the first group one would think of for this repertoire, but the performances here are consistently impressive, if somewhat uncharacteristic. One would not have imagined that the Austrian group could perform with such passion, yet the Debussy is so passionate it's practically purple, while the Ravel is so impetuous it's just about reckless. Listeners might reasonably have supposed that this quartet would be more than capable of articulating the technical refinements of Stravinsky's works for string quartet, but few would have guessed that this account of the Concertino would have rocked so hard. Recorded in tight, close, and vivid early digital sound, and apparently unremastered for this 2010 reissue, this disc belongs on the shelf next to the quartet's recordings of Beethoven, Brahms, and, of course, Berg.