Unfold

The Kreutzer Quartet, long regarded as one of Europe’s most dynamic and inventive ensembles, turns here to four Australian string quartets from the 1960s and 1970s.

Kreutzer Quartet ensemble
Peter Sheppard Skærved violin
Mihailo Trandafilovski violin
Morgan Goff viola
Neil Heyde cello

Don Banks composer
Nigel Butterley composer
Richard Meale composer
Felix Werder composer

They are the dedicatees of numerous works, and over many years have forged creative partnerships with composers including Sir Michael Tippett, David Matthews, Michael Finnissy, Judith Weir and Hafliði Hallgrímsson.

On this recording they present works by Don Banks, Nigel Butterley, Richard Meale (String Quartet No. 1) and Felix Werder (String Quartett No. 8).

Members of the Kreutzer Quartet are Peter Sheppard Skærved and Mihailo Trandafilovski, violins; Morgan Goff, viola; and Neil Heyde, cello.

Banks’ Sequence for solo cello was commissioned by the 66 Group in Cardiff and first performed by George Isaac in 1967. An opening lento sets out the principal motifs; an allegro develops them, with ad lib sections that set virtuosic passagework against slow plainchant. Between each ‘Canto’ Banks explores a single technique – sul ponticello, pizzicato, sul tasto, col legno – before a short coda gathers the earlier ideas.

Reviews

The versatile Kreutzer Quartet takes a whirl in the time machine and journeys to Australia for four string quartets composed between 1964 and ‘75. Meale and Werder receive first performances. These Banks and Butterley quartets haven’t been committed to disc since the 1980s. What looks to be a historical outing actually sounds as fresh and compelling as anything written last week. Michael Hooper’s fine notes explain the endeavor.

Banks’ 20-minute single-movement quartet reflects studies with Dallapiccola, Babbitt and Gerhard, a strongly expressive atonal sensibility that his Australian colleagues never fully appreciated. Butterley would write four quartets. These two movements take inspiration from a poem by Henry Vaughan (1621-1695), The Revival, whose first word provides the disc’s title. The music is precisely notated, but can be arrhythmic and intentionally lack vertical alignment.

Meale and Werder’s quartets are played from full score (the cover art is Meale’s blotting paper). Meale’s No. 1 is in two parts. For the second part, the players scatter to new positions turning their backs to the audience, projecting icy indifference. The contrast in atmosphere is enormous. Werder intentionally doubles the final letter in “quartett,” yet the work doesn’t feel Germanic. Tempo markings are literally cut out of Walton’s Cello Concerto and pasted here. Born in Berlin, eventually settling in Australia, Werder remained an outsider.

— Grant Chu Covell, La Folia

Artists

Kreutzer Quartet

The Kreutzer Quartet has forged an enviable reputation as one of Europe’s most dynamic and innovative string quartets. They are the dedicatees of numerous works, and over many years have forged creative partnerships with composers including Sir Michael Tippett, David Matthews, Michael Finnissy, Judith Weir and Hafliði Hallgrímsson.

Don Banks

Don Banks (1923–1980) was an Australian composer of concert, jazz and commercial music. Serial craft, electronics and a lifelong pull toward jazz shaped chamber works, concertos and scores central to mid-century Australian modernism.

Nigel Butterley

Nigel Butterley (1935–2022) was an Australian composer and pianist. His catalogue ranges from radiophonic and choral scores to chamber, vocal and orchestral works, and as a pianist he was closely identified with contemporary music and the prepared piano.

Richard Meale

Richard Meale (1932–2009) was a leading Australian composer of instrumental works and operas, and an influential teacher. Early scores introduced international avant-garde methods to Australian audiences; later music turned toward a frank lyric tonality.

Felix Werder

Felix Werder (1922–2012) was a German-born Australian composer who stood at the forefront of the musical avant-garde in this country. His early twelve-tone writing later opened into a freer, collage-like style that often makes virtuosic demands on its performers.