Budapest Schubert Ensemble - Schubert: Octets (1992)

Given the charm of the melodies, the delight of the harmonies, the enchantment of the colors, and the beauty of the forms, it would take hard heart to dislike Schubert's Octet for string quartet plus clarinet, bassoon, horn, and double bass and a nearly incompetent ensemble to make a mess of it. The Schubert Ensemble, Budapest, is considerably more than merely competent: the musicians seem to have been born with Schubert's music in their hearts. Indeed, so wonderfully lyrical is their playing that the word hardly seems adequate -- "singing" is closer to the mark. In this 1992 Naxos recording made in Hungary, the Schubert Ensemble sings and soars and shines with an enjoyment that borders on bliss and an affection that borders on love. Listen to the sweet tone of the first violin or the juicy tone of the clarinet or the throaty tone of the viola or the warm tone of the horn or the gruff tone of the double bass: it's as if the musicians and their instruments had become one being in the act of making music. Coupled with Schubert's other, very early Octet for pairs of clarinets, oboes, horns, and bassoons performed by three of the same players plus five other winds, this disc will give pleasure to anyone who already loves the work as well as to anyone just getting to know it for the first time. Naxos' sound is a bit distant but still clear and warm.