String Quartet No. 2 (Beethoven)
The String Quartet No. 2 in G major, op. 18, No. 2, was written by Ludwig van Beethoven between 1798 and 1800 and published in 1801.
It consists of four movements:
Of the opus 18 string quartets, this one is the most grounded in 18th century musical tradition.[1] According to Steinberg:
- In German-speaking countries, the graceful curve of the first violin's opening phrase has earned the work the nickname of Komplimentier-Quartett, which might be translated as "quartet of bows and curtseys".[2]
The nickname may have originated from one of Haydn's last string quartets written about the same time (Op.77, No. 1 -1799) which was also known as the Komplimentier-Quartett. Haydn was Beethoven's teacher at the time, and one detects a similarity in style between the two quartets. They also both happen to be in the key of G major.[3]
After he had finished the quartet Beethoven was not satisfied with the second movement and wrote a replacement. Sketches of the original slow movement survive and a complete version has been reconstructed by musicologist Barry Cooper.[4] It was performed publicly, potentially for the first time, by the Quatuor Danel in the Cosmo Rodewald Concert Hall at the Martin Harris Centre, University of Manchester, on 30 September 2011.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Winter + Martin, p. 155
- ^ Winter + Martin, p. 156
- ^ The string quartets of Joseph Haydn. Banat Blog (in German), 19 April 2009. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
- ^ 'Lost' Beethoven work to be aired BBC News, 28 September 2011, Retrieved 12 October 2011.
[edit] References
- Robert Winter, Robert Martin eds. (1994). The Beethoven Quartet Companion. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-08211-7.; especially the essay by Michael Steinberg (pp. 155–159)
[edit] External links
- String Quartet No. 2: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.
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