Bartok: Complete String Quartets

Béla Bartók was one of the most significant musical voices of the 20th century. Self-taught as composer, he combined elements of his homeland's traditional folk music with influences of his contemporaries to produce a highly distinctive, immediately recognisable style. His six string quartets represent a milestone in the history of the genre and provide a unique insight into the way the composer's musical language developed over four decades.

With driving rhythms, sharp dissonances and even quartertones, this cycle presents a huge musical and technical challenge to even the most accomplished quartets. The Guarneri is on fine form here and delivers first-rate performances brimming with character.