Koeckert Quartet

The Koeckert Quartet was a well-known German string quartet.[1]

Origin and activity

It was first founded in 1939 under the name of the "Sudeten German Quartet", later renamed the "Prague String Quartet". It consisted of members of the German Philharmonic Orchestra in Prague (1939-1945), which had been founded by order of Joseph Goebbels. In 1947 it took the name Koeckert Quartet, after its first violinist Rudolf Koeckert. (1913–2005). Since 1949 the quartet resided in Munich, and the members were soloists of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. In the 1950s and 1960s, it shaped the musical life of the city of Munich alongside other ensembles, from where it started concert tours to North America, South Africa[2] and all major European cities. It was thus one of the leading German string quartets of international standing. The quartet existed under the name "Koeckert Quartet" until 1982, when it was succeeded by the "Joachim Koeckert Quartet"; its first violinist, Rudolf-Joachim Koeckert, is the son of Rudolf Koeckert; the position of second violin was taken over by Antonio Spiller. Since 1982 this ensemble has premiered most of Karl Höller's important chamber music works, as well as works by Günter Bialas, Alberto Ginastera, Paul Hindemith, Ernst Křenek and Winfried Zillig. The Joachim Koeckert Quartet existed until 1992).

Lineup[3]
  • Rudolf Koeckert (1st violin) (until 1982)
  • Willi Buchner (14 October 1910 Schwarzau / Lower Austria) (until 1965), Rudolf-Joachim Koeckert (10 April 1941 Prague) (2nd violin)
  • Oskar Riedl (4 July 1912 Graslitz / Bohemia) (until 1975), Franz Schessl (viola)
  • Josef Merz (20 August 1911 Gumplitz / Bohemia) (until 1976), Helmar Stiehler (cello)

Discography (by Deutsche Grammophon GmbH)
  • Anton Bruckner, String quintet F major (with Georg Schmid, viola), mono (DGG 18.042)
  • Robert Schumann, String Quartet op. 41 Nr. 2 and Bedřich Smetana, String Quartet No. 1 (1959)
  • Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, String Quartet op. 12 (1960)
  • Franz Schubert, Trout Quintet D 667, with Christoph Eschenbach, piano(1964)
  • Joseph Haydn, String Quartet Hob. III:72 (1969)
  • Carl Orff, Catulli Carmina, with choir and orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, conductor: Eugen Jochum (1970)
  • Robert Schumann, String Quartet Op. 41 No 1 and 3 (1985)
  • Edvard Grieg, String Quartet (1990 and 1992)

Literature
  • Alain Pâris: Klassische Musik im 20. Jahrhundert. dtv, Munich 1997, ISBN 3-423-32501-1.
  • Violinist und Quartettgründer Rudolf Koeckert gestorben. Neue Musikzeitung. 7 September 2005. Retrieved 18 April 2020.
  • A. Schmitt: 25 Jahre Koeckert-Quartett. In Musica. 18, 1964, p. 86.
  • J. Creighton: Discopaedia of the Violin, 1889–1971. Toronto 1974, ISBN 0-8020-1810-6.

References
  1. Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart. (MGG), volume 10, Bärenreiter Verlag, Kassel/ Basel 2003, ISBN 3-7618-1120-9.
  2. Source material tours South Africa 1961, 1969, 1976
  3. Marc Honegger, Günther Massenkeil (ed.): Das große Lexikon der Musik. volume 4: Halbe Note – Kostelanetz. Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau among others 1981, ISBN 3-451-18054-5.
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