Beethoven / Dover Quartet Complete String Quartets 3 CD

The celebrated Dover Quartet, the young, Grammy-nominated ensemble brimming with prestigious awards and residencies, concludes it's critically acclaimed, three-volume Beethoven cycle with the composer's five monumental, revolutionary Late Quartets and imposing Grosse Fugue. The triple-album release comprises Beethoven's very last compositions - remarkable and often daunting works that upended the concept of the string quartet. Many critics and scholars consider them the ultimate expression of Beethoven's artistry. At the same time, lyrical, songlike "vocal" writing pervades the Late Quartets, delighting the same audiences who flocked to Rossini's operas. The Dover's first two Beethoven installments were greeted with ecstatic reviews: "Beethoven would find it hard to believe that his quartets could be played with such perfection of execution, such beauty of tone, such nuance of expression, and such keen understanding of his music's meaning and intent." (Fanfare) "Their Beethoven is, simply, perfection." (Classical CD Reviews)