KARNAVIČIUS, J.: String Quartets Nos. 3 and 4
Vilnius String Quartet
Ondine ODE1387-2

Raymond Bisha introduces the second volume of string quartets by the Lithuanian composer Jurgis Karnavičius (1884–1941), recorded by the Vilnius String Quartet on the Ondine label. Their first volume comprised the composer’s romantic, folk-music inspired first two quartets. Volume 2 presents the Quartets Nos. 3 and 4, which are more expressive and modern in style. Karnavičius wrote the four quartets in the 1910s and 1920s during his study and teaching years in St. Petersburg, filling the chronological and stylistic interlude between the string quartets of Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich.