The Doric String Quartet has a great affinity for Haydn. The crack British outfit has already released two sets – the Op. 20 and Op. 76, both of which were nominated for Limelight recordings of the year – and their live performances of Haydn at the Wigmore Hall have almost a cult following. Tasteful and judicious use of vibrato gives these performances the sinewy gut string feel of the likes of the Mosaïques and London Haydn Quartet but with an added edge.

The six quartets in the Op. 64 set were composed in 1790 for public performance. Haydn’s employer Prince Nikolaus Esterházy had died that year and the composer was off to London, where three of...