Program Notes
Singular Sensations
May 8, 2018
String Quartet No. 1, Op. 27 in g minor, Edvard Grieg
I. Un poco andante - Allegro molto ed agitato
II. Romanze. Andantino
III. Intermezzo. Allegro molto marcato - Più vivo e scherzando
IV. Finale. Lento - Presto al saltarello
The study of connections in music history can reveal some quirky results. Research abounds with suggestions that Ravel’s string quartet was influenced by Debussy’s quartet, which was influenced by Grieg’s quartet, which was influenced by one of the Schubert quartets. All but Schubert wrote just one complete existing quartet, and all composers acknowledged difficulty in creating a work in that form.
In the case of Edvard Grieg, he admitted that the quartet form was a challenge, as he was more accustomed to writing in smaller forms. (An early quartet was lost and his third quartet remained unfinished.) He decided to tackle this form in the summer of 1877. After a flurry of compositions (notably Peer Gynt) and appearances in Europe, he and his wife found lodgings at a farm in the Hardanger country inland from Bergen. They liked the spectacular surroundings so much that they settled into that area, he got to work on the quartet, and he finished it in the winter of 1878. He was influenced by strong nationalist sentiment in Norway at the time and deliberately incorporated inspirations from folk tunes and one of his own songs (The Minstrel’s Song). Despite the fact that he had studied in Leipzig and used Mendelssohn and Schumann as his first models, he had (by this time) developed his own musical language. He also had definite, creative views on the use the stringed instruments. The end result was almost orchestral–he used multiple stops on the four instruments. There is rhythmic vitality throughout.
The main theme of the first movement has suggestions of Grieg’s piano concerto of 1868. The second movement (Romanze) is melodic and gentle, with some interruptions to this mood. Its lyricism justifies the statement that Grieg was the “Chopin of the North.” The third movement (Intermezzo) is announced by big muscular chords, leading to a scherzo with the flavor of a rustic dance. The finale incorporates a saltarello, an ancient fast Italian dance. Grieg revised the work with the help of his friend, violinist Robert Heckmann, to whom the quartet was dedicated. The premiere performance of the quartet took place in Cologne, Germany, with Heckman as first violinist. It was an all-Grieg program that included songs selected by the composer himself.
Grieg lived almost 30 years after the completion of his quartet. He toured, composed much more, conducted and was highly regarded as an influential musician. In 1885 he and his wife built Troldhaugen, his home outside Bergen in a beautiful setting overlooking a fjord. There he built a separate small hut with a spectacular view, in which he did much of his work. When he died his ashes were placed in a grotto near the hut, sealed with a stone door, engraved with the name “Edvard Grieg.” By Roberta Mielke
Quintet in C Major Op. 163, D. 956, Franz Schubert
I. Allegro ma non troppo
II. Adagio
III. Scherzo. Presto – Trio. Andante sostenuto
IV. Allegretto
The String Quintet in C holds a special place in the pantheon of chamber music, especially for cellists. The Quintet was to be Schubert’s last completed chamber work, completed in September of 1828; he died on November 19, 1828 at the age of 31. Schubert heard a private rehearsal of the work in October, a month before he died. Today it is hard to believe that one of the greatest of all chamber works remained unheard in public until 1850, twenty-two years after the composer’s death, and that it remained unpublished for three more years.
Schubert's decision to use a second cello (rather than the second viola characteristic of Mozart’s quintets) permits him to explore the string trio texture in the middle of the ensemble, while making embellishments with the "bookend" combination of first violin and second cello at the extremes of the quartet range. The second cello also adds to the overall richness of the piece, contributing to a darker sound. Schubert's writing for the strings is symphonic, revealing, in such details as the frequent fanfare rhythms and repeated-note patterns, touches of "orchestration" that would have been assigned to winds and brass in one of his symphonies. In doing that, he revolutionized the art of writing for strings. He created sounds that no one had ever created before in a small string ensemble, constantly varying the texture as he did it. There are vast changes of light and color in the piece, as well as great harmonic variation. With a work so sublime, so intrinsically musical, and of such profound spiritual depths, anything one says about Schubert’s String Quintet seems dangerously trivial. The work is in four movements, and in each of them the composer pairs the instrumental forces in such a way as to make them sound constantly new, a considerable achievement given the Quintet’s length.
The first movement (Allegro Ma Non Troppo) opens with an introduction of astounding beauty. The introduction of the movement’s second theme by the two cellos and the way Schubert juxtaposes the other three instruments around this theme in the rest of the movement, is an example of a great master at the height of his powers.
Few pieces in Western music approach the serenity Schubert captured in the miraculous second movement (Adagio), which begins with the three inner instruments singing a broad, lyric melody, while the two outer voices (the first violin and second cello) provide the framework. The turbulent second theme is a remarkable contrast to the otherworldly opening theme. It has been reported that Artur Rubinstein requested that this movement be played at his funeral.
The third movement (Scherzo) is bouncy, rollicking, high-spirited, while the movement’s Trio provides a period of repose. One of the score’s marvels is the way Schubert moves the listener from the quiet Trio to a repeat of the Scherzo in only eight transition measures.
The final movement (Allegretto) is essentially a rondo, but the composer lavished an almost sonata-form development on his opening dance-like theme. During this final movement, Schubert again uses the cellos in duet, contrasting their solemn, broad musical line with sometimes scampering counterpoint from the higher instruments, as though reminding us of the work’s earlier movements.
Acknowledgements: Ted Libbey, Paul Thomason By Susan Lauscher
Program notes may draw on open-access web resources.
I. Un poco andante - Allegro molto ed agitato
II. Romanze. Andantino
III. Intermezzo. Allegro molto marcato - Più vivo e scherzando
IV. Finale. Lento - Presto al saltarello
The study of connections in music history can reveal some quirky results. Research abounds with suggestions that Ravel’s string quartet was influenced by Debussy’s quartet, which was influenced by Grieg’s quartet, which was influenced by one of the Schubert quartets. All but Schubert wrote just one complete existing quartet, and all composers acknowledged difficulty in creating a work in that form.
In the case of Edvard Grieg, he admitted that the quartet form was a challenge, as he was more accustomed to writing in smaller forms. (An early quartet was lost and his third quartet remained unfinished.) He decided to tackle this form in the summer of 1877. After a flurry of compositions (notably Peer Gynt) and appearances in Europe, he and his wife found lodgings at a farm in the Hardanger country inland from Bergen. They liked the spectacular surroundings so much that they settled into that area, he got to work on the quartet, and he finished it in the winter of 1878. He was influenced by strong nationalist sentiment in Norway at the time and deliberately incorporated inspirations from folk tunes and one of his own songs (The Minstrel’s Song). Despite the fact that he had studied in Leipzig and used Mendelssohn and Schumann as his first models, he had (by this time) developed his own musical language. He also had definite, creative views on the use the stringed instruments. The end result was almost orchestral–he used multiple stops on the four instruments. There is rhythmic vitality throughout.
The main theme of the first movement has suggestions of Grieg’s piano concerto of 1868. The second movement (Romanze) is melodic and gentle, with some interruptions to this mood. Its lyricism justifies the statement that Grieg was the “Chopin of the North.” The third movement (Intermezzo) is announced by big muscular chords, leading to a scherzo with the flavor of a rustic dance. The finale incorporates a saltarello, an ancient fast Italian dance. Grieg revised the work with the help of his friend, violinist Robert Heckmann, to whom the quartet was dedicated. The premiere performance of the quartet took place in Cologne, Germany, with Heckman as first violinist. It was an all-Grieg program that included songs selected by the composer himself.
Grieg lived almost 30 years after the completion of his quartet. He toured, composed much more, conducted and was highly regarded as an influential musician. In 1885 he and his wife built Troldhaugen, his home outside Bergen in a beautiful setting overlooking a fjord. There he built a separate small hut with a spectacular view, in which he did much of his work. When he died his ashes were placed in a grotto near the hut, sealed with a stone door, engraved with the name “Edvard Grieg.” By Roberta Mielke
Quintet in C Major Op. 163, D. 956, Franz Schubert
I. Allegro ma non troppo
II. Adagio
III. Scherzo. Presto – Trio. Andante sostenuto
IV. Allegretto
The String Quintet in C holds a special place in the pantheon of chamber music, especially for cellists. The Quintet was to be Schubert’s last completed chamber work, completed in September of 1828; he died on November 19, 1828 at the age of 31. Schubert heard a private rehearsal of the work in October, a month before he died. Today it is hard to believe that one of the greatest of all chamber works remained unheard in public until 1850, twenty-two years after the composer’s death, and that it remained unpublished for three more years.
Schubert's decision to use a second cello (rather than the second viola characteristic of Mozart’s quintets) permits him to explore the string trio texture in the middle of the ensemble, while making embellishments with the "bookend" combination of first violin and second cello at the extremes of the quartet range. The second cello also adds to the overall richness of the piece, contributing to a darker sound. Schubert's writing for the strings is symphonic, revealing, in such details as the frequent fanfare rhythms and repeated-note patterns, touches of "orchestration" that would have been assigned to winds and brass in one of his symphonies. In doing that, he revolutionized the art of writing for strings. He created sounds that no one had ever created before in a small string ensemble, constantly varying the texture as he did it. There are vast changes of light and color in the piece, as well as great harmonic variation. With a work so sublime, so intrinsically musical, and of such profound spiritual depths, anything one says about Schubert’s String Quintet seems dangerously trivial. The work is in four movements, and in each of them the composer pairs the instrumental forces in such a way as to make them sound constantly new, a considerable achievement given the Quintet’s length.
The first movement (Allegro Ma Non Troppo) opens with an introduction of astounding beauty. The introduction of the movement’s second theme by the two cellos and the way Schubert juxtaposes the other three instruments around this theme in the rest of the movement, is an example of a great master at the height of his powers.
Few pieces in Western music approach the serenity Schubert captured in the miraculous second movement (Adagio), which begins with the three inner instruments singing a broad, lyric melody, while the two outer voices (the first violin and second cello) provide the framework. The turbulent second theme is a remarkable contrast to the otherworldly opening theme. It has been reported that Artur Rubinstein requested that this movement be played at his funeral.
The third movement (Scherzo) is bouncy, rollicking, high-spirited, while the movement’s Trio provides a period of repose. One of the score’s marvels is the way Schubert moves the listener from the quiet Trio to a repeat of the Scherzo in only eight transition measures.
The final movement (Allegretto) is essentially a rondo, but the composer lavished an almost sonata-form development on his opening dance-like theme. During this final movement, Schubert again uses the cellos in duet, contrasting their solemn, broad musical line with sometimes scampering counterpoint from the higher instruments, as though reminding us of the work’s earlier movements.
Acknowledgements: Ted Libbey, Paul Thomason By Susan Lauscher
Program notes may draw on open-access web resources.
