George Enescu: Octet, op. 7; Quintet in A minor, op. 29

George Enescu is a composer on the fringes of the repertoire. He is well-known for his Rumanian Dance for orchestra, but the rest of his music, much of which is completely different, is on the obscure side. This was actually the first recording of the Piano Quintet; there is now a second one available cheaply on Naxos, coupled with the Piano Quartet No. 2. This recording is simply magic. I have no other way to describe it. It will take even the most expert listener many listenings, and a lot of time, to understand the extent to which Enescu's genius is brought across in this recording. You could listen to the Quintet a hundred times, a thousand times, a million times and still get new things out of it. And Kremer's ensemble, together with fantastic Lithuanian pianist Andrius Zlabys, play with a heartfelt, divinely rarefied warmth.