Meet the String Quartet

The Evergreen Forum

MEET THE STRING QUARTET

Meet the String Quartet is a brief introduction to one of music’s most enduring genres. This three-week course seeks to provide participants with a framework for further listening and study.

We’ll explore the reasons why this ensemble of only four string instruments provides such a flexible and expressive vehicle for some of the most sophisticated thoughts of some of the greatest composers.

The talks will be illustrated with both visual and recorded musical examples. The ability to read music is not required

.October 15, 2007-Class I: Haydn and the Classical Style

With good reason, Joseph Haydn is often called the "Father of the String Quartet." In our first class, we’ll begin with Haydn’s earliest quartet, and trace the genre’s amazing development over the course of his career. After a quick glance at Mozart’s contributions, we’ll begin to look at the ways Beethoven transformed the quartet from entertainment music to his personal musical laboratory.

October 22, 2007 — Class II: Beethoven and the Romantics

In our second class, we’ll find out why Beethoven’s so-called "Late" Quartets are among the greatest musical works ever written. Then, we’ll find out why composers such as Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Brahms largely turned away from Beethoven’s achievements, and what they did instead.

October 29, 2007 — Class III: Debussy, Schoenberg, Bartók and the Modernists

At the very end of the nineteenth century, the string quartet was infused with new life, as composers turned once again to the genre. We’ll start with the Quartets of Debussy and Ravel, follow on with those of Schoenberg, Berg, and Bartók, and end with the question "Whither?".

Recommended Listening

The following listening is recommended prior to each class:

Class I: October 15th

Haydn: String Quartet in E-flat Major, Opus 33, no. 2

Mozart: String Quartet in C Major, K.465, "Dissonance"

Beethoven: String Quartet in F Major, Opus 18, no. 1

String Quartet in F Major, Opus 59, no. 1

Class II: October 22nd

Beethoven: String Quartet in C-sharp Minor, Opus 131

Schubert: String Quartet in D Minor, D.810, "Death and the Maiden"

Optional:

Brahms: String Quartet No. 3 in B-flat Major, Opus 67

Class III: October 29th

Ravel: String Quartet in F Major

Berg: String Quartet, Opus 3Bartok: String Quartet No. 3

Optional: Schoenberg: String Quartet No. 2

Webern: Six Bagatelles for String Quartet, Opus 9

Leader: Nathan Randall is Artistic Director of the Princeton University Concerts.

Monday: 12.30 to 2.30 p.m.

3 weeks beginning October 15