I caught the Verus String Quartet’s complete Beethoven quartet cycle on the final day. The Beethoven cycle is a familiar feature of Suntory Hall’s annual Chamber Music Garden and the Verus, founded by fellow students of the Toho Gakuen School of Music in 2006, are the second Japanese quartet to embark on this project at this prestigious festival. Obviously, listening to the full six-day cycle and attending only one installment are very different experiences, but it was still moving to witness the group cross the finishing line.
For the final performance, the group chose String Quartet no. 3, String Quartet no. 16 and String Quartet no. 8 ("Razumovsky"). I hadn’t encountered the Verus before, but from the opening bars it was evident that they have a very distinct sound and performing style, which is part of their identity as a quartet. One could perhaps say their performing approach is Zen-like. They play with restraint and are never aggressive. They use vibrato sparingly in a “pure tone” manner. Their dynamic range is quite small, and the four players are equals. The first violin doesn’t dominate, perhaps to a fault. I am guessing their style is based on sticking to what’s actually written in the score, but they have taken that idea to the extreme. It’s rather unsettling at first, but since their approach is consistent, one gets use to it after a while. Beyond that, it comes down to personal preference.
The Allegro first movement of String Quartet no. 3 began in a gentle and hushed way – in fact, all the movements begin in piano, which was played not just softly but sotto voce. The first violinist Naoto Sakiya’s playing felt particularly stoic, and even when the first violin had the melody, he never attempted to come to the fore, remaining part of the ensemble. Looking at the score, it’s true that a substantial part of the work is indeed in piano and Beethoven uses fortes and sforzandos more as effects within the soft playing, and probably that was what they were aiming for. But this approach stifled the liveliness of the Allegro. Beethoven was a young, ambitious man when he wrote this work (around 1798-1800), and even compared with the other works he composed around this period, there is no reason to presume that the quartets would have been played in such an emotionally restrained, flat manner.
In that sense, their approach suited the more meditative style of String Quartet no. 16, Beethoven’s final utterance in this genre. Beginning with the questioning motif (yet again in piano), the four players created a serene mood, every note played with precision and tonal purity, and attention to dynamics. After the short and breezy second movement, the meditative Lento assai movement in the key of D flat was a perfect vehicle for their beautiful sotto voce playing, here specified by Beethoven in the score. In the finale, which opens with the famous “Muß es sein” theme, the players opened up somewhat and brought energy to the fore.
They continued largely in the same vein in "Razumovsky", although here the individual players, especially the viola and cello, came forward with more character and expression, probably due to the soloistic nature of Beethoven’s writing. In the galloping finale, the cello provided a strong rhythmic drive, and in the final bars they built up to a genuine climax, at last giving release to their emotions. After a long and warm ovation, the quartet brought closure with the chorale Befiehl du deine Wege (“Commit thy way“) from Bach’s St Matthew Passion. A reflective Dankgesang at the end of their monumental journey.
