String Quartets Op 20 1-3
Haydn's Op. 20 string quartets are widely considered to be works with which the mature classical style more or less came of age. That makes them critically important historically, but they are also no less worthy artistically. While the next set of quartets, Op. 33, would introduce a wholly new kind of humor to classical music, these pieces are much more serious. Two of the quartets are in minor keys, and one of them--Op. 20, No. 3--had a deep and lasting impact on Mozart especially, being written in his special "tragic" key of G minor. The Kodaly Quartet is slowly working its way through all 68-1/2 Haydn quartets, and at a budget price these excellent performances offer an ideal opportunity to get to know some of the greatest music in Western civilization.--David Hurwitz