Cypress String Quartet, Gary Hoffman - Schubert: String Quintet in C Major (2014)

Cellist Gary Hoffman joins the Cypress String Quartet in this 2013 rendition of Franz Schubert's String Quintet in C major, D. 956, one of the supreme masterpieces in chamber music. The performance on this release from Avie is energetic and passionate, and the listener becomes deeply engrossed from the outset because the highly expressive playing is immediately compelling. This group is attuned to Schubert's subtle changes of mood, key, and harmonic direction, and the String Quintet's nuances are conveyed with great care and sensitivity, especially in the sublime Adagio, where the delicacy of the writing comes across with tenderness and absolute clarity. The Quartettsatz in C minor, D. 703 is a substantial single movement that is much more than filler, and the Cypress Quartet delivers it with the same commitment and vitality it gave the Quintet. The performance is filled with electric energy that nervously pulses from beginning to end. Avie's reproduction is remarkably clear and vibrant, and the musicians have credible presence without being miked too closely.