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Shades of Romani Folklore

Ulysses Quartet
Christina Bouey violin
Rhiannon Banerdt violin
Colin Brookes viola
Grace Ho cello

Ludwig van Beethoven composer
Paul Frucht composer
Leoš Janáček composer

Release Date: October 13, 2023
Catalog #: NV6567
Format: Digital
20th Century
Classical
Chamber
String Quartet

What happens when you fuse the power of Beethoven, the raw emotion of Janáček, and the exoticism of Frucht with a beautifully exuberant string ensemble? The Ulysses Quartet gives a definitive answer on SHADES OF ROMANI FOLKLORE, an album exploring the rich and vibrant tradition of Romani music.

Each composer, who lived centuries apart from one another, drew on this wellspring of inspiration in a unique way, producing music that is deeply personal yet informed by the Romani style and spirit, and the Ulysses Quartet translates their creations with arresting artistry and pin-point accuracy.

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"With this recording – one of this year’ best – the superb Ulysses Quartet offers a definitive reading of a twentieth century masterpiece."

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Track Listing & Credits

# Title Composer Performer
01 String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Op. 18 No. 4: I. Allegro ma non tanto Ludwig van Beethoven Ulysses Quartet 8:21
02 String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Op. 18 No. 4: II. Andante scherzoso quasi allegretto Ludwig van Beethoven Ulysses Quartet 7:23
03 String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Op. 18 No. 4: III. Menuetto: Allegretto Ludwig van Beethoven Ulysses Quartet 3:23
04 String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Op. 18 No. 4: IV. Allegro – Prestissimo Ludwig van Beethoven Ulysses Quartet 4:18
05 Rhapsody Paul Frucht Ulysses Quartet 11:17
06 String Quartet No. 2 “Intimate Letters”: I. Andante—Con moto—Allegro Leoš Janáček Ulysses Quartet 6:12
07 String Quartet No. 2 “Intimate Letters”: II. Adagio—Vivace Leoš Janáček Ulysses Quartet 6:12
08 String Quartet No. 2 “Intimate Letters”: III. Moderato—Andante—Adagio Leoš Janáček Ulysses Quartet 5:19
09 String Quartet No. 2 “Intimate Letters”: IV. Allegro—Andante—Adagio Leoš Janáček Ulysses Quartet 7:45

Recorded January 8-10, 2020 at Veronica Hagman Hall in Danbury CT
Recording Session Producer & Engineer Sheldon Steiger

Photography by Lara St. John
Styling by Milica Paranosic

Executive Producer Bob Lord

A&R Director Brandon MacNeil

VP of Production Jan Košulič
Audio Director Lucas Paquette

VP, Design & Marketing Brett Picknell
Art Director Ryan Harrison
Design Edward A. Fleming
Publicity Kacie Brown

Artist Information

Ulysses Quartet

Ulysses Quartet

Ensemble

The Ulysses Quartet has been praised for their “textural versatility,” “grave beauty,” and “the kind of chemistry many quartets long for, but rarely achieve” (The Strad), as well as their “avid enthusiasm ... [with] chops to back up their passion” (San Diego Story), “delivered with a blend of exuberance and polished artistry” (The Buffalo News). Founded in the summer of 2015, the group won the grand prize and gold medal in the senior string division of the 2016 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and first prize in the 2018 Schoenfeld International String Competition. In 2017, the quartet finished first in the American Prize and won second prize at the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition.

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Notes

The thread that connects the seemingly contrasting works on this album is the influence of the rich and vibrant tradition of Romani music-making. Each composer drew on this wellspring of inspiration in a unique way, creating music that is deeply personal yet informed by Romani style and spirit.

Op. 18 No. 4 by Beethoven takes the listener through their emotional paces, laying the foundation for the profound breadth of his later works — at turns tempestuous, tender, and tongue-in-cheek. The piece culminates in a rip-roaring finale with a distinct Romani flavor to its rondo theme.

Paul Frucht’s Rhapsody was inspired by Maurice Ravel’s Tzigane, a masterpiece of musical exoticism written for the Hungarian violin virtuoso Jelly d’Arányi that evoked the Romani style. Frucht uses the inventiveness of Tzigane as a jumping-off point, incorporating elements of jazz and other jazz-influenced popular American idioms.

In contrast to the early Beethoven, Intimate Letters is one of Janáček’s most mature and powerful works, representing his tumultuous and mysterious relationship with the much younger Kamila Stösslová. In one of the hundreds of letters he wrote to her, Janáček admitted to Kamila that he had cast her in the role of Zefka, a Roma girl whose forbidden love affair with Czech youth forms the basis of his song cycle The Diary of One Who Disappeared. Though Kamila’s own correspondence was destroyed at her request, her specter haunts the piece in the form of Janáček’s tormented, obsessive passion and the full spectrum of raw emotion on display.

Videos

Ulysses Quartet – Janáček Intimate Letters