May 15, 2006
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The Washington Post 5/15/06:  The Daedalus Quartet flew into town this weekend on wings of so…  no, that’s not right. Waxy feathers?  More like jet-propelled rockets of blistering virtuosity. Since bursting on the scene six years ago, this young ensemble has been making a name for itself as one of the hottest new quartets around --  and on Friday night at the Corcoran Gallery, they showed why.

The program opened with the first of Mendelssohn’s string quartets, Op. 44, No.1 in D Major. It’s a light work that critics love to dismiss; and sure, the drama gets a little high sometimes, the gestures a little too sweeping.  But there’s so much pure pleasure in it that you forgive the indulgences and beg for more, and the Daedalus gave it a heady reading: The Allegro exploded out of the gate, the Menuetto ached with bittersweet longing, and the Presto con brio – well, refer back to those “rockets of blistering virtuosity.”

While Mendelssohn sweeps you off your feet, Bela Bartok would rather just pull the rug out from under you – and then hit you with it. His Quartet No. 3 is a wild and unfettered masterpiece, a raging brain-storm of ear-bending sonorities and inventive, edgy rhythms.  The Daedalus dove into it with fearless abandon; the music rang into the heavens; and the audience emerged stunned, grateful and alive.

But that was mere prelude to Mozart’s String Quintet in E-flat Major, K.614, which the Daedalus (joined by Roger Tapping on viola) gave a full-blooded, magnificent reading -- so hot you could almost smell wax in the air. In all, a brilliant performance.