Several recordings in the Bartók New Series have won Pizzicato Supersonic prizes, but it is the first time an album from the set has taken an Excellentia.
The double-CD was recorded by the Mikrokosmos String Quarter, with Gábor Takács-Nagy, Zoltán Tuska, Sándor Papp and Miklós Perényi.
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"We basically progressed in order with the recording, but we left the fifth quartet until last because it is musically and technically the biggest and the most difficult piece", said first violinist Takács-Nagy. Bartók's string quartets capture the essence of a certain period of his career, much the same as with Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms, he added.
The Bartók New Series was launched in 2006, on the 125th anniversary of the composer's birth. The 31-disc series is expected to be completed by 2011.
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI) / Photo: bartokujsorozat.hu
