Established at The University of Melbourne in 2003 (and named for the lengthy lane running through its Parkville campus), the Tinalley String Quartet is renowned worldwide for high-calibre, electrifying performances and intuitive, seamless musicianship.

While based in Brisbane (from 2018) as Ensemble in Residence at the University of Queensland, the group embarked on a project to record all six of Felix Mendelssohn’s string quartets. The first instalment was released in 2019 and comprised No 1 (Op. 12) and No 2 (Op. 13), dating from 1829 and 1827 respectively (the Op. 13 actually being the earlier work). Mendelssohn next penned a group of three (Op. 44) in 1837-8 and completed his final quartet in 1847, a few months before his untimely death at just 38. On this latest recording, Tinalley presents No 3 (Op. 44, No 1) and No 6 (Op. 80).

The first of Mendelssohn’s Op. 44 Quartets is an elegant, serene and melodious work in four movements, written during a period of contentment and stability shortly after his marriage to Cécile Jeanrenaud in 1837. Of particular note are the stately lyricism of the second Menuetto movement and the gorgeous soaring...