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Title: Tokyo quartet rarely equalled in Schubert, among other composers
Review: Their virtues here: perfect tempi, flawless technique, profound sense/understanding of Schubert's complex language, such as the ghostly opening and intensely sad first movement, profoundly beautiful second movement interrupted by a nearly atonal angry outburst (akin to those in the ninth symphony and A Major sonata D959), shifting textures and mood in the quicker final movements. I find them equalled by three groups : the Amadeus, Lindsays, and Emerson. In the Tokyo's #s 12-14, they are also equalled by the Quartetto Italiano, who falter in this last quartet. The Tokyo sounds most similar to the Lindsays; they are less ghostly and febrile than the Amadadeus ( a great reading) and a tad less driven than the Emerson. The Tokyo are just as persuasive in their otherRCA Schubert performances: #s 9 and 12-15.
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