The Danish String Quartet presents a combination of Bach fugues, late Beethoven quartets, and works by important modern composers in its Grammy-nominated Prism project. In the second installment of the series, Bach's Fugue in B-flat minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier – arranged by Emanuel Aloys Förster – meets Beethoven's String Quartet Opus 130 and Schnittke's Third String Quartet, composed in 1983. "A single ray of music is refracted through Beethoven's prism. Our aim is for these connections to be experienced in a broader way. We hope that the audience will share our wonder at the musical rays that reach from Bach through Beethoven to the present day," the ensemble explains. The recording was made in the historic Reitstadel Neumarkt, produced by Manfred Eicher. The release coincides with the quartet's international tour, which includes concerts on both sides of the Atlantic and culminates in several Prism concerts on the US West Coast. The ensemble will perform the entire Prism cycle in five concerts at the La Jolla Music Society at the end of November.
