This long-awaited CD debut by the Madawaska Quartet reinforces the ensemble’s place as a powerful triple threat in the new music scene. Threat one is the ensemble’s surprising aptitude for developing ear-pleasing new repertoire. The results can be heard here in two world premières: Mike Kane’s openly expressionistic Three Short Seasons and Bruce Russell’s African influenced Madra. Threat two arrives as an impressive capacity for programming. This quartet creates incredible connections across wide time periods and creative practices. Placing Alfred Schnittke’s iconic String Quartet No. 3 at the heart of this disc ingeniously links polystylistic throughlines from the Middle Ages to minimalism in one statement about the ongoing evolution of the string-quartet genre. Threat three is evident in the astonishing talent these four women bring to well-executed interpretations. Their precision, unity, and clarity of voice are inspiring. They even make Henry Purcell’s seventh Fantasia for Four Viols—already outmoded in 1680—feel fresh.
