Wood Works

This is the not the first jazz or folk release from a classical string quartet that started life as an occasional concert encore and developed into a full-on side project. It is, however, a cut above what other classical quartets have achieved. The tone and polish of Wood Works identifies the Danish String Quartet as a classical ensemble. But this group of players – three Danes and a Norwegian – bring colour and pathos to a hand-picked selection of traditional Scandinavian tunes, led by the light and quicksilver touch of first violinist Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen. The second part of the ‘Sønderho Bridal Trilogy’ glides from a whispered, keening violin melody to a layered dance, and ‘Skestur from Vendsyssel/The Peat Dance’ has a lilt and spring that develops into a highly danceable jig. The quartet's arrangements are occasionally trite in their witty sparkle and rounded edges – the jazzy ‘O Fredrik, O Fredrik’, for example – but elsewhere the classical touches do not jar. Swedish ballad ‘Ack Värmeland, du Sköna’ develops into a touching, romantic mini-movement. Wood Works was a labour of love and it shows.