Robert Schumann: String Quartet No. 3

Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

String Quartet in A Major, op. 41, No. 3

-Andante espressivo - Allegro molto moderato

-Assai agitato

-Adagio molto

-Allegro molto vivace

Minguet Quartet

MP3 recorded at the Art and Exhibition Hall of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bonn on September 19, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW)

In the Schumann bicentennial year, concert goers, radio listeners and internet users have a chance to get better acquainted with many of his seldom heard works. Peter Ruzicka, whose own music was also performed at this concert, describes Schumann as a "great unknown" and thus as an underestimated and misunderstood composer.

The Minguet Quartet, based in Cologne, was founded in 1988 and named after Pablo Minguet, an 18th century Spanish philosopher who in his writings sought to make the fine arts accessible to the common man. That ideal is the artistic goal of the four members of the quartet: Ulrich Isvort and Annette Reisinger (violins); Aroa Sorin (viola) and Matthias Diener (cello).

Apart from classical and romantic music, the ensemble devotes intensive attention to modern music, having made the first complete recordings of string quartets by German composers Wolfgang Rihm and Peter Ruzicka.

Author: Rick Fulker

Editor: Greg Wiser