Le Quatuor Romantique consists of violinist Vassili Voronin, cellist Edward John Semon, Markus Märkl, piano, and its founder Joachim Diessner at the harmonium. Diessner is also a collector of his instrument; he seeks to contribute to the harmonium’s rediscovery and to revive its repertoire. He founded the ensemble Le Quatuor Romantique with the aim to breathe new life into the varied and rich music repertoire from the avantgardist salons of the late 19th Century. Shadowlands is the ensemble’s debut CD on the ARS Produktion label. Quatuor Romantique selected the works for this recording not in order to present a kaleidoscope of works, but rather in search for evidence – evidence of both the historicity and the timelessness of dark romanticism, and evidence of its classical forms and many intersections with the art of the 20th Century. One key element is the instrumentation used for the recording – violin, violoncello, piano and harmonium – which emphasizes sonic sensuality and the discursive element of the music over a mere technical transcription. This particular combination was common in the literary salons of the early 20th Century.