Kuijken Quartet, Michel Boulanger: Schubert – String Quintet | Album Review

The Kuijken Quartet here is not the ensemble of old, a period-instruments group led by Sigiswald Kuijken and with his brother Wieland on cello.

It features two generations of the family, with Sigiswald’s daughters Veronica and Sara joining on first violin and viola, respectively. And the players, including guest cellist Michael Boulanger, here opt to use modern instruments. They offer a reserved account of Schubert’s sublime and often darkly probing quintet.

I sometimes find myself resisting the intense, heart-on-sleeve urgency that's often brought to the first two movements. Here I find the approach just too cool. On the other hand, the last two movements, especially the finale, have an unforced, lithe, sinewy strength. challenge.nl