Pf.com 21/11/2025: An Exciting New Release from Yarlung Records in Pure DSD256 with Quartet Integra Performing Beethoven, Ligeti, and Lefkowitz
Kyoka Misawa and Rintaro Kikuno on violins, Itsuki Yamamoto on viola, and cellist Ye Un Park—bring astonishing versatility and depth to these performances. The album opens with Beethoven's final String Quartet No. 16 in F Major Op 135, and continues with a captivating performance of Ligeti's ground breaking 1968 String Quartet No. 2, an explosive yet unexpectedly beautiful work. The program concludes with David S. Lefkowitz's Green Mountains, Now Black, a richly layered new work composed in 2025 in response to the composer's emotional response to the 2025 Los Angeles fires.
In all three works, the Quartet Integra bring a depth of insight surprising for a group of musicians so relatively young. They have been described "as the most exciting young quartet to emerge from Japan (with Ye Un from Korea) since the storied Tokyo String Quartet" and listening to these performances without prejudgment will tell you why. Their intensive training at Suntory Hall's Chamber Music Academy has served them well as they perform with a degree of refinement, combined with power and energy, that is most gratifying to hear. Paul Rushton – Review in full
The Yomiuri Shimbun
“Seamless unity, outstanding narrative quality” -
First, their cohesion is formidable. In the first movement of Quartet No. 1, the frequent full stops seem like a magnetic field drawing all four players together. Their breathing is perfectly synchronized.
To say this flawless performance is a fly in the ointment might be nitpicking. It was the start of a complete series that left me marveling at such maturity at such a young age. Atsuya Hunaki
Mostly CLASSIC
Clarity, a sense of structure, and a rich sonic density reflecting the high caliber of each individual performer now characterize Quartet Integra. Combined with the ensemble's high level of tension, their forward momentum is vigorous.
Their technical skill is already at a high standard. They can manage large-scale yet meticulously detailed ensemble passages. Grasping the inherent character of each work and accurately portraying the specificities of individual pieces will make them even more compelling. Ryo Tobe
Ongaku No Tomo Magazine
A quartet of dazzling brilliance, radiating a dazzling radiance.
Sublime beauty, profound empathy without affectation, precise phrasing and an ever-changing musicality.
I witnessed the quartet's origins as a single living entity. Yudai Majima
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