Budapest Quartet

Even though the Budapest Quartet had an off-day, it was able to give an exciting and often brilliant performance. Occasional wrong notes, inexact pick-ups, and tonal aberrations made it all too clear that Messrs. Roisman, Gorodetzky, Kroyt, and Schneider were not in top form last Sunday afternoon, but their interpretive mastery, their ability to immerse themselves in the music they play, brought cheers and foot-stamping from the capacity audience in Sanders Theatre.

The beginning of Haydn's Quartet in G Major (Op. 77, No. 1) sounded rather thin, and not until the middle of the second movement did the group display the full tone that chamber music lovers have grown to expect of it. The final two movements were flawless. All four instrumentalists played precisely but not mechanically, and Haydn's mellow humor was brought out in every measure.

Not every ensemble can move from a Haydn quartet to the viscous impressionism of Ravel without losing some authenticity en route. But the Budapest group played Ravel's F Major Quartet with all the suavity of tone and relaxation of phrasing that the piece required. In thematic structure and general outline the work is similar to the better-known Debussy quartet, but the contrasts seem much sharper here. The long, meditative third movement and the very short, intense finale demand virtuosity as well as restraint--two qualities for which the Budapest Quartet is famous. Ravel's skillful use of the quartet timbre, per se, was tastefully demonstrated by the perfect balance and fluency of Sunday's performance. In addition, the delicate nuances and logical tempi made this the outstanding part of the concert.

The group concluded with Beethoven's Third Rasoumovsky Quartet, a work it has played much better in the past. Rhythmic laxity marred the first movement, and the brilliant fugue of the finale suffered from lack of clarity in some of the voice parts.

This wasn't really a bad performance--there were many moments of lyric and dramatic intensity--but it still was quite a let-down. Perhaps the gentlemen were tired (they came to Cambridge in the midst of a rigorous Beethoven cycle in New York). At any rate, they did justice neither to the music nor to themselves.