Out Now: Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Fantasiestücke / Dvořák Op. 106
“The Takács are impressive on this album: every micro-phrase, every note is considered. Their sound draws you in from the first moment. The opening chords and sinuous lines vibrate and thrill on many levels; this is of course to do with their rich and subtle playing but also the fantastic recorded balance.”
Gramophone Magazine, September 2023, Amy Blier-Carruthers. Read more
“This album finds the quartet in excellent shape, with their clarity of idea and warmth of sound as strong as ever.”
BBC Music Magazine, August 2023, Kate Wakeling. Read more
Full discography for Hyperion and Decca available here:
“This is a magical album.” (London Times)
“This recording is really a joy from start to finish.” (Five star review, BBC Music Magazine)
“These are both powerful, brilliantly imagined interpretations, painted in bold, rich colors and shaped with flashing virtuosity.” (Richard Bratby, Gramophone)
“[Hough’s new quartet for the Takács] is a lovely work, full of wit and panache, that could hardly have more committed, persuasive advocates than the Takács Quartet.” (James Longstaffe, Presto Music)
“In the Takács’ hands, Ainsi la Nuit skips weightlessly from gauzy otherworldliness to coiled-spring punchiness to gossamer delicacy.” (Erica Jeal, The Guardian)
Five star review, BBC Music Magazine
“One thing is certain about this new recording by the Takács Quartet: you will not hear better string quartet playing anywhere in the world today. The technical perfection can almost be taken for granted, but there is also the warmth and affection of the performances, and the insight into the visionary slow movements, especially the wonderful Adagio of Op. 77 no.1.”
(Misha Donat, BBC Music)
Winner of the Recording of the Year PRESTO MUSIC, 2021.
“Deploying their familiar finesse (immaculate tuning and ensemble) and care for detail, the Takács do brother and sister proud … [they] create a magical sense of time suspended at the climax of the first movement’s development [in Op 13], while leader Edward Dusinberre is a model of eloquence and restrained pathos in the finale’s recitatives.”
(Richard Wigmore, Gramophone)
Winner of the Gramophone Classical Music Awards 2021, Chamber category.
“This excellent release celebrates two glorious pieces for piano quintet with performances of unabashed élan. The Takács Quartet are renowned for the warmth and drama of their playing and could not be a better fit for such full-blooded works, while Garrick Ohlsson, a noted Chopin exponent, proves a similarly fine match in this generous, lyrical interpretation … with excellent recording quality throughout, this is in every respect an outstanding disc.”
(BBC Music Magazine)
“The performance [of Op 26] from Hamelin and the Takács is totally compelling, encapsulating a vast array of colours and textures, from the dark and mysterious opening and the wistfulness of the central Intermezzo to the anguished climaxes of the Finale … a treasurable disc”
(BBC Music Magazine)