Brahms's three string quartets arrived late in the composer's career, where the weight of Beethoven's legacy had for a long time made him sceptical. Winners of the ARD Munich and the Mozart Competition, the Novus Quartet has established itself as one of Korea's finest ensembles, and definitely one of the most interesting, venturing right from the start into the Second Viennese School, Franck, Shostakovich and Schubert. In Brahms, their transparent sound is combined with total commitment and an incisive, passionate lyricism that magnificently serves the composer's unparalleled sense of architecture.