Hagen Quartet - Maurice Ravel - String Quartet in F - Assez vif, Très rythmé (2/4)

The second movement of 28 year-old Ravel's Quatuor à Cordes. He is said to have been meticulous in his writing, and, finally, a group of musicians have matched his efforts in terms of attention. This is, in my opinion, the best performance and recording of this piece.

The second movement is possibly the most known, as audiences remember the pizzicato opening; its usage in media, such as for the film "The Royal Tenenbaums" (W. Anderson) and as trailer music for films such as "Be Kind Rewind" (M. Gondry) also furthers its memorability. Assez vif introduces two new melodies; a rhythmic melody and a contrasting "sung" melody, which is both graceful and heroic. It is as though these are character motifs.

Hagen Quartet:

First Violin - Lukas Hagen (Austria)
Second Violin - Rainer Schmidt (Germany)
Viola - Veronika Hagen (Austria)
'Cello - Clemens Hagen (Austria)

Concert hall - Mozarteum, Salzburg, Austria. (2000.)

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the copyrights. I am uploading these in the spirit of sharing artistry and education. I urge you to visit the following links and consider purchasing:

The avi file, http://www.medici.tv/#/movie/2832/
And/or the DVD, http://www.hbdirect.com/album_detail.php?pid=3003258