"Work is now quite wonderful and merry," wrote Mendelssohn in 1837, just as he was finishing his Quartet in E minor Op 44 no 2, one of three works – with the D major Op 44 No 1 and F minor Op 80 – on this second volume of chamber music from the Mandelring Quartett. A top German ensemble which has made acclaimed recordings of Shostakovich, Schubert and Brahms, the group is not yet well known here but should be. The players combine technical brilliance with beautifully controlled dynamic contrast and gleaming clarity. Mendelssohn's characteristic soaring melodies and fizzy semiquaver flurries lift the mood, though three quartets in one sitting may leave you feeling aerated. Savour them one at a time.