For the Record, Op. 309: Charleston Symphony String Quartet; The Harlem Chamber Players; Kuss Quartet

November 29, 2024, 3:18 PM · Welcome to "For the Record," Violinist.com's weekly roundup of new releases of recordings by violinists, violists, cellists and other classical musicians. We hope it helps you keep track of your favorite artists, as well as find some new ones to add to your listening!

Composer Thomas Cabaniss and violinist Yuriy Bekker, Concertmaster and Artistic Director of the Charleston Symphony.

Denmark Vesey: String Quartets of Thomas Cabaniss, Vol. 2
Charleston Symphony String Quartet
Yuriy Bekker, violin
Micah Gangwer, violin
Jan-Marie Joyce, viola
Benjamin Mekinulov, cello
Thomas Cabaniss, composer

Thomas Cabaniss's sixth quartet, "Denmark Vesey," tells the story of Denmark Vesey, a slave revolt leader who was ultimately convicted and hanged for his plot to liberate slaves throughout Charleston, South Carolina. A native of Charleston, Cabaniss has been teaching at Juilliard in the Dance Division since 1998 and in the Music Division since 2007. He created the "Denmark Vesey" quartet in 2022, the 200th anniversary of the attempted rebellion, using principal themes from his opera, "Denmark Vesey," which was originally completed around 1990. In this album, the Charleston Symphony String Quartet presents that quartet as well as Cabaniss's third and fourth string quartets, completing Cabaniss’s six-quartet series (Vol. 1 contains his Quartets Nos. 1, 2, & 5). BELOW: String Quartet No. 6 "Denmark Vesey": I. With a Groove and a Hint of Swing "Nobody Knows Who I Am":

Adolphus Hailstork Chamber Works
The Harlem Chamber Players
Adolphus Hailstork, composer

Born in 1941, African-American composer Adolphus Hailstork’s music blends African, American, and European traditions. The Harlem Chamber Players describe it this way: "There are parts that positively sound like something Shostakovich or Prokofiev might have written, perhaps echoes of Hailstork’s studies with Nadia Boulanger in the 1960s. There are moments of contemplation, but if this album is anything, it’s invigorating and profound." The album includes Hailstork's "Detroit" Piano Quintet and "Nobody Know," a piece for baritone voice and string quartet, commissioned by The Harlem Chamber Players to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first Black enslaved people in America. BELOW: Excerpt from "Nobody Know."

Schubert: String Quartet No. 14 "Death & the Maiden"
Kuss Quartet
Jana Kuss, violin
Oliver Wille, violin
William Coleman, viola
Mikhail Hakhnazaryan, cello

For their latest album, the Berlin-based Kuss Quartet have programed Schubert's quartet "Death and the Maiden" with two contemporary works by composers the quartet have often championed. Schubert’s disturbing, death-obsessed quartet, composed in the winter of 1822 when the composer was suffering from syphilis that would eventually claim him at the age of 31, has become one of his most performed works. The opening bars are electrifying, and without doubt, the early romantic age in music had dawned. BELOW: String Quartet No. 14 in D Minor, D. 810 "Death & the Maiden": I. Allegro

If you have a new recording you would like us to consider for inclusion in our "For the Record" feature, please e-mail Editor Laurie Niles. Be sure to include the name of your album, a link to it and a short description of what it includes.

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For the Record, Op. 309: Charleston Symphony String Quartet; The Harlem Chamber Players; Kuss Quartet

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