Arthur Honegger this week. His String Quartet Number 2, performed by the Winterthur Quartet in a broadcast performance recorded at the Radiostudio Zurich on January 12, 1956.
The life of Arthur Honegger, on the face of it, seems to have been fairly calm and straightforward: he lived in Paris, studied at the Conservatoire, travelled as his career required it, lived comfortably from his work, and had a private life free from scandal…
However, behind this innocuous facade hid a rich and complex personality, that needed independence and complete solitude to work, but loved the diversions of Parisian life; isolated, yet believing in his occupation of musician as an active member of society, and taking part in the life in the city; composing and making his fortune with an operetta, but loving music for its solemness and austerity; celebrated for having revived the oratorio, but regretting the fact that he could not only compose operas; expressing wonderfully the Hope in his work with Claudel and his second symphony, but tormented by doubt and finally surrendering to absolute pessimism faced with the ludicrousness of the world and man… Yes, Arthur Honegger is a complex individual, impossible to label, but whose music, nevertheless, is immediately recognizable: the work of a craftsman in his trade, who federates the diversity of his talents with an artistic personality that is both strong and powerful.
The Winterthurer Streichquartett is unique in the best possible sense of the word. What other string quartet has ever been able to celebrate its 100th anniversary? Normally, string quartets develop and unfold their art in the same setup, living together in such a way that they communicate blindly with each other and if – for whatever reason – the musicians break up, the quartet dissolves. This was basically the case with the Lasalle Quartet, one of the most influential in 20th century music. The Arditti Quartet, just as influential for contemporary music, is a little different, as it is bound to, shaped by and named after its first violinist and founder Irvine Arditti, while the other positions experienced various changes.
The Winterthur String Quartet consisting of the respective Musikkollegium Winterthur principals, is quite different. When a new leader joins the string section, the quartet line-up changes too. Thus, the four positions are regularly renewed, which demands great flexibility its members. But this flexibility is exactly what gives provides quartet with its liveliness.
Enjoy the concert.
