10. The String Quartet Special, Ep.2: Károly Schranz of the Takács Quartet
Károly (Karcsi) Schranz was the original second violinist of the Grammy award winning, Takács String Quartet, who were also winners of the Evian and the Portsmouth International String Quartet competitions and annually performs throughout the world’s most prestigious concert halls since its forming at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest, Hungary. Kárcsi, who makes his home in Boulder, Colorado, where the Takács have been in residence at the University of Colorado, retired from the quartet in 2018, after a 43-year storied career. Karcsi and I chat about the struggles of member changes in quartets, his early childhood and starting the violin in the Cold War era Hungary, recording the quartet’s acclaimed Bartók and Beethoven cycles for Decca records to answering the Magnificent Seven Questions. The Secrets of Beethoven segment, Karcsi and I delve into the hilarious story behind the premier of the op.130 string quartet in Vienna, but more importantly the Grosse Fugue, the original final movement of the quartet, which became the biggest musical scandal of that day. #BBB #Beethoven #Bad Boy #Jae Cosmos Lee #A Far Cry #Chamber Orchestra #Self Conducted #Cape Symphony #Concertmaster #classical #Chamber Music #String Quartet #Takàcs Quartet #founding member #second violin #Beethoven String Quartet #Bartók String Quartet #Károly Schranz #Karcsi #University of Colorado #Boulder #Budapest #Musikás #Hungary #Decca #violin #viola #cello