SPOHR, L : String Quartets (Complete), Vol. 14 - Nos. 31 and 36

Louis Spohr composed string quartets throughout his career, the String Quartet No. 36 being his last completed large-scale work, composed in 1857 and modelled on those of Haydn and Mozart. As a result of depression during his later years, Spohr embargoed its performance, but as this recording shows it is a work of consummate craftsmanship. His String Quartet No. 31 was composed eleven years earlier and found favour with Mendelssohn and Wagner for its tightly woven counterpoint and sophisticated character. The earliest piece here, the Potpourri No. 4, is a short virtuoso display piece that draws on favourite opera arias by his idol Mozart.