Well, sooomeone sent me the Festetics Op.20, and, for the first time since I heard about them 6 months ago on This Very Thread, I was able to hear them. I gotta tell you that hearing them simply makes me think of the months I fantasized what they might sound like, and all the ways they've been talked about. "Leisurely" certainly came to mind, haha! But please, let me give you my 100% TOOL (Totally Objective Opinionated Longwindedness):
My non-musical friend is familiar with
Op.20/2 in C Major. When the Festetics came on, it wasn't 20 seconds later that she said, "It sounds like old men,... picking up young girls!" And I laughed, remembering the "spirited amateurs" comment. This was no cut, though, and indeed, the Festetics do sound like a mature group to my virgin ears. Of course, the mellow sound of the tuned down gut strings, and, may I say "unbuttoned"? approach (though, at one point my friend said "schoolmasters"), lends these interpretations a very "lived in" and yet spontaneous "live" feel.
My next impression is is that the Festetics "sound" NOT like a HIP band at all, but one of those more old fashioned 1950s type quartets. Yea, maybe they use minimal vibrato (their take on this is the easiest on the ears of any HIP band I've heard), but, IMHO
, they sound to me like the "play" what I would just call the "natural" style. I mean, to me, it just sounds like a modern quartet, except that when chords and notes are held out, I can hear that non-vibrato buzz/fuzz, though in a very natural way, very pleasant. So, this way a big revelation to me. I haven't heard the Tatrai, but I would rather compare the Festetics to them, rather than to Mosaiques.
The very smallish "pleasant sounding" (my words) room, and fairly upfront recording, make this "afternoon merry music making" interpretation even more "right there in the room with you." It literally sounds as if the Festetics are right over there, and you're eavesdropping on their perfect practice session. This is about the most intimate Haydn you're probably ever going to get. The smile factor is pretty high.
So, how do they play the music of Op. 20, to my ears? Well, all this talk of "leisurely" I can understand, but I fail to hear it that much (the only first mvmt that seemed a touch less than was No.6 (compared to Lindsays, very much so)). I thought, though by no means speed demons (Lindsays, London Haydn Qrt), their tempos appeared to be right about the sweet spot all the time. They appeared
extremely dependable to deliver the same thing over and over (hence, the allusion to old fashioned, "dependable" quartets). Sure, they are an ultra fine hair slower than most everybody all the way around (because of the "unbuttoned" approach), but, within that framework, everything sounds right. There WERE a few spots where I did feel drag though, mostly, I supposed in the meneuts or finales. I gotta say that I like my finales for all they're worth, and it was here that I found my most extreme compares.
Of course, I had to check out the first mvmt of No.5 right away to see if they did the big melody they way I like, and... no, and... I think it must be a HIP thing, that they don't allow themselves the overt expression, like I hear in first violin Cropper of the Lindsays. Neither the Mosaiques or the Festetics play the melody as impassioned as the Lindsays, but, beyond that, both do just fine. And, the Festetics do get it a bit better than the QM, IMHO, in this crucial part ( in the QM, the lead violin goes more into the texture, rather than soaring out front; the Festetics give the violin a little more spotlight, but the player won't allow his notes to really pierce my soul). Other than that, the Festetics' slightly folksy approach imbues this mvmt with a deliciously rustic feel (also enhanced by the close recording) that "sounds" totally different than, say, the Lindsays' more Heroic approach which is married to their sumptuously modern-icy-cool-warm ASV recording.
In fact, I thought the Festetics made No.5 sound like late Beethoven. Does anyone else hear this? And, of course, I mean it in the good way.
Concerning my other obsession, Op.20/2, I thought the close recording hampered true enjoyment for me. Not that I didn't enjoy the music, but the recording made this piece sound to "big" for me, too upfront, and I've got to have a little space in No.2. This is the same situation that I thought worked so well for No.5.
I had a direct compare in No.4 with the Esterhazy (who, btw, sound totally HIP to me, whilst the Festetics sound like the Festetics), and, ultimately, both bands play the music pretty much the same, which then led to the one observation about the Festetics that may generate some controversy (and, also something I don't recall being mentioned that strongly about the QF). When compared to the kaleid...oh, how do you spell it?, you know,... sound of the LHQ, or the very glittering soundworld of the Esterhazy, the Festetics do appear, just a bit by comparison, bland in their general ensemble tone. Individuals will make interesting sounds here and there (the cello is very deep sounding), but, generally, there appears to be a general "curtain" over the whole tonal landscape. PLEASE don't let anyone get their panties in a bunch here, it's JUST AN OBSERVATION. Perhaps I'm wrong
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Yes, this post will cut up into weekly installments
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I'm almost done, but I want to make sure I say everything I want to say. After
thinking about the Festetics for 6 months, it's almost anti-climactic hearing them. I find them kind of plain-jane in the grand scene of things, but it is this very casual approach of theirs that is their total charm. The unbuttoned performances coupled with the living room recording give an extremely "homey" and happy impression. They seem solid, rugged, manly (as opposed to, perhaps, the Esterhazy's more feminine approach). Dependable. Smile worthy.
Though, by themselves, there is no real downside (there was much instance of intonation wondering in the slow mvmt of No.1 that I would need someone elses' opinion on (could it have just been the no vibrato thing?)), when compared with others, the Festetics seem to appear a shade bland. This is the same thing I see in the Kodaly. They are a great base interpretation on which to base other interpretations.
I'll be honest. I thought I was having problems with the
Lindsays' Op.20, with a couple of particular intonation guessing sections, but, after this compare, I have come away so totally impressed with the Lindsays here. Their enthusiasm is UNMATCHED. Perhaps their leader's almost idiot-savant enthusiasm gets the best of him in microscopic places (I still don't know if I'm hearing anything wrong, or not), but, honestly, the Lindsays seem to do everything light years beyond everybody but the LHQ.
The
Quartetto Esterhazy], also, has the most magical, Christmassy "sound" to their recordings of Nos. 2 & 4. Crackling notes break off like crackling sparks in a fluffy church ambience that leaves a halo around the intruments. And, their performances are the epitome of HIP delicacy. This sounds the most like four musicians playing in a castle hundreds of years ago. So cuddly!
Anyhow, I'm glad I finally heard the Festetics. By default of their recording (coupled with their approach) they have a sound just as distinguishable as the Mosaiques. They have their own Haydn niche, which no one else really comes anywhere near. They are the most "conversational" sounding group I've heard. Everything is extremely low key, even though they can generate the requisite heat. I think the word "leisurely" set me up. I don't find them "really" leisurely, but their approach is so genial, what other words can you use?
The bottom line is that, for me, the close up recording and "Sunday afternoon salon" unbuttoned approach combine to make you think your uncle and his friends are playing in the same room with you(though, not in the audiophile way). You definitely get a certain thing with this set. Personally, I wouldn't want their close up recording for
every opus number (not for Op.20 (more reverb!), but maybe I'd like their dry sound more in something less dramatic and more motivic, such as Op.50, where their drier sound would help clarify lines better, perhaps?).
I remembered Jens friend scrunching her nose whenever the Festetics came on. I didn't have that reaction here. No real vinegar thing at all here, I thought.
Still, if you didn't tell me they were HIP, it would take me a while to hear the super little vibrato. They just play too naturally, and sound,...well...modern! Why haven't I heard this from anyone? I thought they weren't HIP.
Festetics= solid, dependable..., "not much this-not too little that"... dry, upfront acoustic (pleasant, not harsh)... your uncle, the schoolmaster, and a couple of beers.
I think Haydn would like em.
