Wihan Quartet - Paganini: 24 Caprices (2010)

Tracklist

01. Caprice No. 1 in E Major: Andante
02. Caprice No. 2 in B Minor: Moderato
03. Caprice No. 3 in E Minor: Sostenuto-Presto
04. Caprice No. 4 in C Minor: Maestoso
05. Caprice No. 5 in A Minor: Agitato
06. Caprice No. 6 in G Minor: Lento
07. Caprice No. 7 in A Minor: Posato
08. Caprice No. 8 in E-Flat Major: Maestoso
09. Caprice No. 9 in E Major: Allegretto
10. Caprice No. 10 in G Minor: Vivace
11. Caprice No. 11 in C Major: Andante-Presto
12. Caprice No. 12 in A-Flat Major: Allegro
13. Caprice No. 13 in B-Flat Major: Allegro
14. Caprice No. 14 in E-Flat Major: Moderato
15. Caprice No. 15 in E Minor: Posato
16. Caprice No. 16 in G Minor: Presto
17. Caprice No. 17 in E-Flat Major: Sostenuto-Andante
18. Caprice No. 18 in C Major, Corrente-Allegro
19. Caprice No. 19 in E-Flat Major: Lento-Allegro Assai
20. Caprice No. 20 in D Major: Allegretto
21. Caprice No. 21 in A Major: Amoroso-Presto
22. Caprice No. 22 in F Major: Marcato
23. Caprice No. 23 in E-Flat Major: Posato
24. Caprice No. 24 in A Minor: Tema con Variazioni-Quasi Presto

The 24 Solo Violin Caprices of Paganini require little in the way of introduction, and purists out there will likely contend that they need little in the way of tampering, either. Hold on to your hats, then, for this Nimbus Alliance disc featuring the Wihan Quartet performing William Zinn's arrangement of the caprices for string quartet. What is a pyrotechnical marvel to witness on a single instrument quickly becomes less interesting and compelling when the duties are spread among four musicians. While the album's liner notes assert that one of the reasons for such an arrangement is to spread the virtuosic elements around so listeners can more carefully focus on them. This is rarely achieved, however, as the violin is still responsible for the bulk of the work and the poor cello and viola are left to sit and count rests. Zinn also brings out his interpretation of the caprices' implied harmonies, which sometimes drastically change the feel of the score. Apart from the arrangement itself, there is still the performance to deal with. Solo violinists are subjected to extreme scrutiny when performing these works, with high expectations for technical accuracy, intonation, and pyrotechnic bravura. The Wihan Quartet does not always live up to these expectations. Intonation is spotty, tempos are often much slower (and therefore less dazzling) than most solo violinists, and technical considerations are less impressive considering each member of the quartet (save for the first violin) doesn't have all that much to do. Listeners are left with a recording of a moderately interesting exercise in arranging, certainly not an album worth running out for to add to a collection.

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