This new three CD set from cpo contains eight string quartets by the German composer Friedrich Ernst Fesca performed by the Diogenes Quartet. Fesca (1789-1826) was a virtuoso violinist, for a period holding the Concertmaster position in the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. It seems his first love...

Sometimes it’s a long process for me to decide whether or not I’ll recommend a particular title on Expedition Audio, and other times only a couple passes through the recording is enough. On very rare occasions, after hearing only the opening measures, I feel pretty confident that...

February of 2013 marked the 250th anniversary of the birth of Bohemian composer Adalbert Gyrowetz (1763-1850). The string quartet form was central to Gyrowetz’ output as over sixty published works in the genre indicates, including sixteen that comprise his Opuses 1-3. This cpo release...

This Brilliant Classics CD contains the complete string quartets of Italian composer and violinist Pietro Nardini (1722-1793) performed by Quartetto Eleusi. Coming as they do from the time - from the decade actually - that the classical string quartet form as we know it emerged,...

Elegant and lyrical, lively and buoyant, these polished concertos by Franz Anton Hoffmeister (1754-1812) are immediately appealing and enjoyable throughout. Hoffmeister’s flute concertos nos. 21 and 24 are performed by flautist Bruno Meier with the Prague Chamber Orchestra. Released by...

Sigismund von Neukomm has appeared previously in the virtual pages of Expedition Audio for a cpo CD of his orchestral music. This second Neukomm disc, also from cpo, offers an assorted collection of the composer’s chamber music with winds, performed by the Kammerensemble Classic der...

Friedrich Hartmann Graf’s (1727-1795) flute concertos come from a time when the transverse flute had recently gained enormous popularity, becoming one of the most fashionable instruments for the concert going public. Composers responded by churning out chamber music and concertos for the...

Sigismund Neukomm (1778-1854) was considered to be one of the most accomplished of composers during his lifetime. Born and raised in Salzburg, he was a student of both Michael and Joseph Haydn. His music remained true to classical principles well into the romantic period, so much so that...

Johann Baptist Vanhal (1739-1813) is believed to have written somewhere in the vicinity of 100 string quartets, making him one of the most prolific composers in that genre. This CD contains three of his late quartets. There is a story related in the album notes that goes something like this....