Belcea Quartet: Beethoven - Th

Heads up ! According to Amazon customer service this morning, the "Region B/2" classification for the Bluray release of this Beethoven String Quartets (Belcea Quartet) is apparently correct ... if so, I assume it will not play on N. American Bluray players. "Region A/1" is for N. America (as well as other parts of the world too). I wrote "apparently" because the product details on the EuroArts website indicate that picture format is NTSC, which in my understanding is for N. America (as opposed to the PAL format). Anyway, I e-mailed EuroArts to get their take on the matter, and will update this review with their response ... my call to Amazon lasted nearly 10 minutes, so it isn't as if the service rep didn't look into the matter reasonably thoroughly. It appears to be a wonderful release, as usual, from the folks at EuroArts ... looking forward to buying it ASAP :-) 12/4/14 UPDATE : EuroAtrs e-mailed me today, assuring me that the product details should read "Region Code 'All' " ... furthermore, they are working on having the Amazon listing corrected :-) 12/13/14 UPDATE : well, that was quick :-) Thanks to Classical Music Store, this wonderful collection of Beethoven chamber music is playing in my home theater 5 days after ordering ... far be it from me to comment on the particular performance - it's been 35 years since I owned most of these quartets (vinyl LPs :-) ... Let's leave that up to persons more familiar with these works. That being said, there's a reason they are considered masterpieces / cornerstones of the classical repertoire. I do feel qualified, however, to comment on the audio/visual quality of the release ... so here goes ... The Bluray image is first rate, and the video direction is fine ... more importantly, for myself, the audio is first rate. The DTS Master Audio format is crystal clear, a delight for my ears, mind, and soul. The most appealing aspect of Bluray discs, IMO, is the HD audio formats ... as an owner of over 100 classical and opera titles, this EuroArts release is state of the art. I'm looking forward to exploring and becoming familiar with these quartets over the next several weeks, and for years and years to come. And yes, it's coded for "All Regions", as the product details now state. Writing this update with the Opus 18 #2 quartet playing in the background, it sounds as if there is a quartet playing here in my home ... viewing it on my TV and hearing it through my ($7,000) sound system, it's almost as if I'm there at the performance ... highly recommended.

The Belcea Quartet has the marketing advantage of putting out the first set of the complete Beethoven String Quartets on video. That deserves a tip of the hat. That having been said, as a video performance I'm not overly impressed. Cameras linger on interpersonal exchanges which I don't care about rather than fingerings, bowings, etc., as well as the 1st violin whose name brands the group. Musically? Others here are saying it's only middling in comparison to other performances they have on CD. So if you really want this for a living room experience, go for it. But I would wait, some other quartet will do better very soon.

This Belcea Quartet is one of the best. And to have a dvd with them performing ALL Beethoven's string quartets is a treat, to say the least. Each one of them is an excellent player, and the four of them play together beautifully as an ensemble - one of the most important aspects that makes a quartet truly great. I have my favorites, but I also realized a while back that with Beethoven's string quartets, it doesn't matter. The early, middle and late quartets are ALL on the same level of excellence - when he composed them is irrelevant. The inclusion of the Grosse Fuge (and a fine rendition) is yet another pleasure to behold. I'd call this highly recommended, and then some!

I am writing mainly to offer a different response to H Bolet's middling review below. Video is visual. It has to influence the reviewer of a product like this one. In my opinion the visuals are wonderful. It is filmed beautifully and the editing is also musically sound. It doesn't hurt that Corina Belcea herself is lovely to watch and brilliant musically at the same time nor that the whole quartet is clearly engaged at every level. Most importantly for me, it has to be said over and over that these overwhelming masterworks can take all sort of approaches, from the slightly dry eyed, though clear cut and incredibly faithful, versions like the Alban Berg to something more romantic and heart on sleeve like these versions. What is important to me is the quality of the playing and the dedication and musicality. These are wonderful, wonderful performances. For a video Beethoven Quartets, I would highly recommend these.

Superbly played, excellent sound and production values, and a beautiful first violinist, a pleasure to watch in the execution of great music.

Beautifully performed and filmed with a knowledge of the music and the conversational nature of the string quartet.

This set does not come in a plastic box, but a tough cardboard one, with cardboard blocks to hold the bluray discs in Sleeves. The sleeves are all white, with writing in pale Emerald Green. A huge Number and then what string quartet music is on each disc, plus the documentary 'Looking for Beethoven'. The four discs has each individual face of the quartet and what instrument they play, plus details of the music played. There is a booklet with the disc numbers and movements to be played. Plus Beethoven Blog by Krzysztof Chorzelski which gives some thoughts on their first Beethoven cycle concert 2011. An essay about the search for new forms. To sum up this essay, Haydn was the father and virtual founder of the sting quartet, Mozart wrote string quartets in honour of the composer, and Beethoven was in awe of Haydn who taught him for a while. But it was Beethoven who pushed the limits of the String quartet beyond Mozart and Haydn, even today, some of this music sounds modern. The Belcea Quartet. Corina Belcea Violin 1. Axel Schacher Violin 2. Krzysztof Chorzelski Viola. Antoine Lederlin Violoncello. The Beethoven string quartets were performed by the Belcea quartet at the Wiener Konzerthaus Mozartsaal over 12 days. The following was taken from the documentary "looking for Beethoven". Corina Belcea comes from Rumania. "Sometimes you can hear folk dancing in her tone". Axel Schacher French Swiss, "there is restraint in his playing, sometimes he loosens up". Krzysztof Chorzelski Polish. "emotionally very much into playing his viola." Antoine Lederlin is French. Playing Beethoven' string quartets is the peak of what you are doing. So you play string quartets eventually to play Beethoven's, the holy grail as it were. "Great music not only is eternal but that perhaps it serves as a mirror of our own time". In the early 1990's Corina and Krzysztof met at the Royal college of music where they studied. " If it were not for the collapse of the Berlin wall and the other Soviet bloc countries at that time, I would not have taken a chance and left Poland". Corina says "We then formed this quartet. We attempt to play as one voice, but at the same time express our individualism. All have equal say". "We do have arguments, but we resolve them and for 20 years have got on remarkably well. I could not stay otherwise. Some quartets do not speak to each other." states Antoine. Krzysztof who is the philosopher of this quartet" The grosse Fuge sounds avantguarde, revolutionary, something that appeals to freedom, an investigation of ourselves. Beethoven is always trying to question things, like what are you as a human". "It is so modern. However long you play the quartets, you never stop learning something new, no matter how long you play them. He was ahead of his time, you can hear Stravinsky and Bartok in the Grosse fugue and some of the late quartets".There are two Op 130's in this set, one with the traditional ending Finale.Allegro and the other with the Grosse fugue. The camera work shows you the audience who are quiet, and the players and their fingering, also their energy and their faces, but there is more to the bluray then this. The camera moves around slowly and does not always stay focused on the group, but individuals and so forth. The Early Quartets suit this Belcea quartet, with their swift tempi when required, bringing out the beautiful melodies, and you can see visually they enjoy playing them by their expressions. The middle quartets bring to the fore their depth in their playing and the Late quartets of Belcea, where they are modern in their approach, for they speak to us, today, knowing this music to be eternal, reaching as Wagner put it," a serenity that passes beyond beauty." You can hear each note in this bluray format, which shows us the spirit of Beethoven, his moods and his ability to be in touch with the mystical in his deaf state. But because these last quartets rank among the greatest achievements in the String Quartets, they have become a monument to Western civilization. I think that is because they speak to humanity, to each one of us, asking the question, who are we? So I may state that I like and own the Budapest, Quartetto Italiano and the Toyko String Quartet versions of Beethoven's string Quartets, and you may like totally different versions and that is valid, for our personalities are different. But this Belcea Quartet version I like for the reasons I have given and the fact that the playing is superb. Running time: 522 minus. Documentary 45 mins. TV Format: 1080i. 16.9. Sound: PCM Stereo. DTS HD Master Audio 5.0. Languages for the documentary: English, German, French. REGION: Worldwide.

Individualmente estas interpretaciones no son, sin duda, las mejores que se hayan grabado de los Cuartetos de Beethoven, pero son muy buenas y mantienen una calidad muy notable y homogénea todas ellas, sin que yo haya percibido grandes altibajos, algo por otra parte hasta cierto punto lógico (lo que no les resta méritos a sus intérpretes) si se tiene en cuenta que estas grabaciones provienen de un ciclo que este Cuarteto Belcea realizó en 12 días en el año 2012. A destacar las dos versiones completas del cuarteto op. 130, una con y otra sin la Gran Fuga op. 133 como movimiento final. Muy buena la presentación de los blu-rays, en 4 fundas de papel individuales dentro de una caja de cartón, en vez de las típicas cajitas de plástico, tal como se puede ver en las fotos que hay aquí en Amazon. Tengo pendiente de ver aún el documental de 45 minutos, pero es que me da algo de pereza al no estar subtitulado al Español. El sonido es buenísimo, pero lo que hace casi únicas estas grabaciones es la posibilidad de ver cómo se comunican los integrantes del cuarteto durante las ejecuciones, algo que en las salas de concierto normalmente resulta casi imposible de apreciar, incluso ni en las salas de cámara de los auditorios, salvo que se esté en las primeras filas. Y esos primeros planos de intérpretes e instrumentos son algo inédito para mí en música de cámara. Al precio que están en Amazon (unos 58€ cuando escribo esto), estos blu-rays me parecen una oferta casi irresistible para los amantes de la música de cámara en general y de la obra camerística de Beethoven en particular. En resumen, las ejecuciones en sí quizás no merezcan las 5 estrellas, pero teniendo en cuenta todos los factores (muy buenas y homogéneas ejecuciones, estupenda presentación del producto, calidad de sonido y de imagen, y la cualidad de exclusividad que tienen en el catálogo de música clásica en blu-ray), he decidido dar la máxima puntuación posible a este sensacional artículo.

Perfect item. Fast shipping. Thanks.

Vendeur superlatif : rapidité et,convivialité . Contrairement à ce que j’ai pu écrire précédemment ces DVD BR ont un menu intitulé chapitre pour accéder au quatuor désiré.

These are outstandingly good performances and being able to see the musicians certainly adds something. There is a technical issue relating to the discs but, once one has understood what is happening, it is a very minor drawback. Each disc has a great deal of material on it, divided into tracks. To choose a work later in a disc one has to scroll down through track numbers. Once one has gone down about 4 or 5 tracks it will pause for a while before scrolling down any further. It feels as if it has got stuck. However, if one waits for about 5 to 8 seconds, it will move again. If one presses the scroll button while it is 'resting' it will remember the pushes and jump down several tracks when it starts again, so patience is advised. This is obviously to do with the Blu-ray player having to handle a lot of information relating to many tracks so some players may perform better than others on this.