LOUIS SPOHR (1784-1859): Double Quartets, Vol. 1 - No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 65 and No. 2 in Flat, Op. 77.

Description: Spohr's four double quartets are unique in music history. Unlike conventional octets for strings, these works offer rich antiphonal interplay and reserve combination of all parts for major points in the composition. These two date from 1823 and 1827, the latter more interesting as Spohr had a better "second quartet" who could do more technically demanding things. Forde Ensemble.