SCHUBERT: Quartet, “Death and the Maiden”; BEETHOVEN:...

SCHUBERT: Quartet, “Death and the Maiden”; BEETHOVEN: Quartet, Opus 95, both arranged for string orchestra by Gustav Mahler. Moscow Soloists, conducted by Yuri Bashmet. RCA Victor Red Seal 09026-60988-2. Of the two works arranged here, the “Death and the Maiden” works better, probably because its “quartet-ish” qualities--to use a Schumann coinage--are less pronounced than those of the Beethoven work. A Schubert melody can survive all sorts of transformations. Opus 95, on the other hand, just sounds strange: None of its ideas lend themselves neatly to the multiplication of instruments. Mahler’s arrangements are straightforward. The playing is spirited, varied, clean, urgent.