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| Schubert: String Quintet in C, D. 956 | 
 enlarge | Artists: Franz Schubert, Emerson String Quartet
Creator: Mstislav Rostropovich
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Category: Music
List Price: $16.98
Buy New: $11.75
You Save: $5.23 (31%)
Buy New/Used from $10.65
Avg. Customer Rating:  (19 reviews)
Sales Rank: 26108
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 431792
UPC: 028943179225
EAN: 0028943179225
ASIN: B000001GFA
Release Date: August 11, 1992
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
A Great Recording January 31, 2007
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The Quintet of Franz Schubert has long been considered a masterpiece yet there is no evidence that it was performed during his lifetime. In fact, little is known about the composition of the Quintet apart from it being mentioned in a letter Schubert wrote to the publisher H. A. Probes. The first performance took place in November 1850.
The first movement contains themes of soaring beauty and power while the slow movement is serene for the most part with passionate outbursts. The Scherzo begins with a brilliant heroic theme followed by a beautifully reflective Trio and the Finale starts with a dance-like melody and moves fairly quickly on to more serene and reflective music returning to the original melody.
This is a superb recording of the Quintet by the Emerson String Quartet with Mstislav Rostropovich as playing the second cello part. The performance is one of great sensitivity and is beautifully recorded. The only problem is that the disc times out at 53:29. The recording was made during a gala concert commemorating the 125th anniversary of BASF AG but one wonders if DG could not have included some other work to better fill out the disc.
Surprisingly eloquent for the Emersons, and technically a marvel December 28, 2006
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
There are deeply eloquent recordings of the Schubert C Major Quintet from the Casals Festival in mono and from Isaac Stern, Yo-Yo Ma and friends in stereo (both on Sony) that outstrip this version by the Emersons and Rostropovich. It's the Emersons' way with Romantic works to offer clean, disciplined, and incredibly smooth-voiced readings. As applied here, the quintet sounds absolutely fresh and astonishingly unanimous and in tune (I'm surprised by the misplaced ciriticms of a reviewer below, who seems to feel that pitch and intonation are two different things). Despite all the remarkable precision on display, there's more heart in the playing than in the other Schubert I've heard from this group (their only failing being that the heartbreaking poignancy of the slow movement seems rather dispassionate here).
I agree with those who call this one of the best recordings from the Emerson Qt. and a triumph for the DG engineers--each instrument is caught with great fidelity and balanced beautifully with the others. Given that this masterwork calls for as much emotional depth as any musician can find, I was a little tempted to withold the fifth star, but I doubt that there has ever been a recording as techniclly flawless as this one, so full honors are well deserved.
Sublimely In Tune December 10, 2006
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
This piece is, in my opinion, one of the great glories of Western civilization. I have known it half my life and I have never heard a finer recorded performance than the present one. The sound is very attractive, a clear deliniation of each voice, and the combined clarity and translucence of the whole without a single distraction. The Emerson Quartet is unmatched by any other, and in this recording, the angels attend their playing. I can't remember enjoying a recording this much in a long time.
Response to Daniel A. Harris November 22, 2006
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Daniel A. Harris claimed in his post that the intonation between different voices in this recording of Schubert's cello quintet is consistently out of tune. What might be a more accurate explanation is that Harris does not truly what "intonation" is.
If there should be a single worthy praise for the famed Emerson String Quartet, it is their emaculate intonation. A listener may be able to justly criticize such aspects as musicality or unique musical touches, but certainly not intonation.
This also applies to the world famous cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, who is featured in this recording. Rostropovoch's technique is considered by practically all musicians in the world to be nearly perfect, rivaling that of Heifetz. I believe that Mr. Rostropovich would be extrememly insulted to hear that someone has claimed that his sense of intonation is questionable, and that he would not notice such an obvious thing as ensemble intonation.
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In actuality, this is the defining recording of the Quintet in C major by Schubert. Although I have heard other recordings of this quintet, namely that of such illustrious musicians as Heifetz, Primrose, and Piatigorsky, Emerson's interpretation is unmatchable. I extremely recomend this recording to any and all.
 Intonation Impairs Fine Performance of Great Quintet July 15, 2006
8 out of 12 found this review helpful
Lovers of this great quintet, D.956, will perhaps want a recording other than this one with the Emerson Quartet and Rostropovich. Fine as the interpretion is, the musicians are NOT in tune. The cellos are not in tune with the violins and viola; and the cellos are often out of tune with each other--in virtually all the movements, including the Adagio, where precision of intonation is crucial. Moreover, the mike-ing of this live performance is off-kilter, and the cello parts are given a prominence which is musicially distressing, as they overbalance (in particular) the 1st violin and, of course, the inner voices. If you don't have a good sense of pitch and intonation, you could be happy with this recording. I wasn't. The Emerson has done better, i.e., with Haydn's "Seven Last Words of Christ." Schubert deserves better.
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