Emerson String Quartet - The Emerson Encores (2002)

The Emerson Quartet, commendably, likes to offer albums introducing listeners to the quartet literature. Their "key" to the Beethoven quartets, featuring movements from several of the 16, is one such album. This disc, by contrast, displays a wide variety of music composed for string quartet, from Haydn to Puccini, Shostakovitch and Webern. It is a delightfully diverse collection, offering grace, wit, beauty and passion. The sound is rich and excellent, making the album a pleasure to own. Why only 4 stars then? The Emerson is, if anything, a bit too slick, too facile and even cute. They are a string quartet in leather baseball caps and gleaming new SUV's, boasting of their vacation in Tuscany and reflecting much that is smug, trendy, and ultimately, superficial. There is plenty to admire in their technical prowess, and, granted, these pieces are labeled "encores," but it is still painful to hear Beethoven dashed off as if the point were simply to see how fast it can be played. The Emerson plays well, but will not be known for the kind of thoughtfulness, let alone richness of insight, much of the literature - and many of its adherents - demand. Indeed, some of the lengthier or calmer movements can sound, frankly, tedious. I am grateful to the Emerson for giving me a rollicking good time with pieces like Wolf's "Italian Serenade," but they are far from being my choice for Beethoven's middle, let alone late quartets, for instance, or for Schubert, Janacek or Brahms.