The Petersen Quartet follow up their intensely committed disc of Schulhoff's mature music for string quartet (Capriccio, 5/93) with this no less formidable collection. As Schulhoff enthusiasts will have come to expect, the works represented are not at all uniform in style. The early quartet is prematurely neo-classical (or is it just cod Beethoven?). It was conceived in 1918 when the composer was still serving in the Austrian Army. The German group certainly give it their all. Tauter and tougher than the Kocian Quartet, they seem intent on radicalizing the discourse whether through a heightened response to its finer points or a more profound understanding of the Beethovenian models that lurk beneath the surface invention. As a result, the Quartet emerges as a wittier, and a more substantial piece.
The string Sextet was completed six years later but sounds quite different, its Schoenbergian first movement well-integrated with the more eclectic idiom of the rest. Whatever the outward manner, Schulhoff's rhythmic phraseology is metrically conceived. Even if you already know the Sextet the Petersen make a plausible first choice. The aggressive communication of their playing is emphasized by the bright, not quite top-heavy sound balance. The Janacek-Bartok-Ravel axis of the Duo is equally well served by a reading sharper and fleeter, albeit less affectionate, than its rival (listed above). The Sonata for solo violin (1927) is at least as interesting as similar works by Hindemith, less emotionally wrenching than the Bartok. That work was composed a couple of years after Schulhoff's premature death as a victim of Nazi persecution in 1942.
Today's Schulhoff boom may be reaching unsustainable proportions, but there could well be a masterpiece or two on this CD. Time will tell. Meanwhile, this is a thoroughly distinguished issue by an ensemble seemingly incapable of giving a dull performance. Capriccio have produced nothing finer than this Petersen Quartet series.'