The Végh Quartet’s 1951/52 Mozart recordings for André Charlin have commanded high prices among out-of-print vinyl dealers. The group’s first official CD reissue, at budget price no less, surely will entice collectors. Although a high degree of surface swish and patches of distortion lead me to believe that EMI’s transfers stem from vinyl pressings rather than master tapes, the mono engineering is quite vibrant and intimately detailed for its vintage. Oddly, the D minor K. 421 and G major K. 387 quartets sound drab and constricted in relation to their discmates. However, sonic considerations take a back seat in light of the Végh Quartet’s finely honed ensemble and cultured musicianship.
Notice, for example, the careful dynamic scaling and uncanny unanimity the players bring to the unison opening of K. 590’s first movement, or in K. 575’s finale, the conversational ease with which the triplet figurations transpire. While K. 465’s Andante, one of Mozart’s longest and most inspired, proceeds in as straightforward and rhythmically centered fashion as possible, the foursome’s subtle variations in tone color, articulation, vibrato, and accent make the interpretation appear more subjective than it actually is. Time and again you also notice that Sándor Végh is not a first violinist bent upon quartet domination, but rather always allows his colleagues their just due in the mix, so to speak. Now that these splendid recordings are available again, along with Music and Arts’ earlier reissue of the the Végh’s 1952 Beethoven cycle, let’s hope for a CD reissue of the Végh Quartet’s landmark mono Bartók cycle.
