Message from the Producer: Beethoven, Ligeti & Lefkowitz [Pure DSD]

Dear Friends at NativeDSD,

Happy upcoming weekend to you, and in the US, Happy Thanksgiving! This month, Yarlung executive producer Russell Ward brings you one of Yarlung’s finest new recordings in the label’s 20-year history.

Tokyo Quartet First Violinist Martin Beaver arranged for Quartet Integra to audition with us at Yarlung before they moved to Paris to serve as string quartet in residence at Centre Européen de Musique de Chambre.  Martin describes the quartet as “… four of the brightest young stars in classical music today.  We are enjoying another golden era thanks to Quartet Integra.”

They are so young, so polite, so refined as people, that it was hard to imagine they had musical fire in their blood… until we heard the first notes during their audition last year.  

Among many other international concert dates for Quartet Integra, our friends at Takács Quartet (famous at NativeDSD for Takács  Assad  Labro) presented Quartet Integra in Takács’ chamber music series in Boulder ahead of our recording sessions.  And Quartet Integra returned a day and a half ahead of our recording session from successful performances in Wigmore Hall.  They have been busy, and in fact are headed for a series of concerts in Japan this month and next, from their new home base in Paris.  

Many thanks to Yarlung executive producer Russell Ward, our inspiration behind the Quartet Integra recording. Please take a look at the album booklet.  We include Beethoven’s last string quartet, Op. 135, Ligeti’s second string quartet, and a new work commissioned from David S. Lefkowitz titled Green Mountains, Now Black.  

We recorded Quartet Integra in beautiful Zipper Hall in downtown Los Angeles at Colburn School.  Yarlung has made about fifteen albums in this concert hall, and it remains one of my favorite acoustic spaces in the world.  You already know this sound: Janaki String Trio, Orion, Sasha Cooke’s If You Love for Beauty volumes 1 and 2, Evening Conversations and others. I hope you enjoy Quartet Integra just as much.

Please let me know what you think and discover more at NativeDSD. 

Best wishes,

Bob Attiyeh, producer